《Cartaflore》 Chapter 1. Hard Worker Velvet wasn¡¯t used to being called to the director¡¯s office. She wasn¡¯t an unruly kid, nor a violent one, and everyone could attest to that. And the ones that didn¡¯t, well, she would tell them the same thing. Where is your evidence? But here she was, and she knew the exact reason. Because, if there was something she did that could get her in problems with the director, there was only one option possible. And, looking at the piece of cloth on director Dorna¡¯s hands, she was right. ¡°Madam Dorna, you called for me.¡± She took off her hat, a straw sun hat topped with a green ribbon, and put it on the coat hanger next to the door. ¡°Indeed. Come closer. Sit down.¡± Velvet would¡¯ve been happy staying as close to the door as possible, but it seemed the reunion was going to be long. I also need to tell her that¡­ she thought, dragging the chair away from the table slowly, as far away as politely as she could. Then she sat down. Madam Dorna waited until she was fully seated, before sliding the piece of cloth across the table, putting it right in front of her. ¡°Care to explain what this is?¡± Velvet took a deep breath before nodding. ¡°Those are pants.¡± Madam Dorna just kept staring at her in silence, her half scorched face making Velvet even more unwilling to meet her eyes. She let out a nervous chuckle. It was not like she could see Velvet, since the director was pretty much blind, but she did look straight towards her, her completely white eyes staring straight at her face. ¡°Pants to which I did sew some magic¡­¡± Her voice became a whisper at the end, and she fidgeted before raising it to normal levels again, ¡°The kids kept falling and scraping their knees, so I put some healing charms on their clothes.¡± Madam Dorna frowned at the mention of magic, but she didn¡¯t interrupt Velvet. It¡¯s not like magic was forbidden in the region of Arhontissa, who controlled Charlampa, where they lived. Here it wasn''t like in Mirel, where unregistered practitioners got hanged or burned at the stake by the Inquisition. Velvet was safe on that front. The front she wasn¡¯t safe on was Madam Dorna¡¯s. Velvet wasn¡¯t going to lie. She knew the dangers of magic. She almost died to get her own powers. But that was because I did it on my own! she complained inwardly. She had talked and talked to every single wandering magician that came to Casrey, trying to pierce together the little bits of information each one of them gave, until she amassed a basic level of understanding of how magic worked. It had been a long journey of a year, but in the end she got the ritual to obtain magic. The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. Usually, the magicians that were going to open a gate to the Primeval Sea were helped by their fellow associates, friends or family, but Velvet had no one of those. And there was a difference between paying for information and paying for protection. Namely, the price. In the end, she alone did suffice, and Velvet was proud of that. Still, it wasn¡¯t even debatable. Magic had taken more lives that it had saved. Her town was an example of that. Not only Madam Dorna¡¯s facial scars, but the fact that ten years ago, there wasn¡¯t any orphanage here. And ten years ago, Velvet could¡¯ve just gone to her parents for help to get a mentor. ¡°In how many clothes did you scribble?¡± Madam Dorna¡¯s voice stopped her train of thought. ¡°In like half of them.¡± ¡°I also found some traces of magic in the water deposit.¡± ¡°To keep it cool and free of bacteria.¡± ¡°Under the beds.¡± ¡°Mosquito repellent.¡± ¡°And some villagers did confess to paying you for some homemade charms.¡± Velvet cleared her throat. ¡°Yes, six chalkins each. Professional made charms cost one to three auris. That¡¯s sixty chalkins. I am no scammer, six chalkins are worth a cup of coffee as much, and it barely covers the price of the materials.¡± She wondered who sold her to the director so soon though. And then regretted not raising the prices a bit more before that. If there was a reason her charms were so cheap, it was to buy their silence, at least until a few weeks. ¡°So, you didn¡¯t hurt anyone with magic, is that right?¡± ¡°Hm.¡± Both of them just stared at each other in silence. ¡°So he¡¯s the snitch.¡± Madam Dorna leaned back on her chair, crossing her hands on her lap and staring at her in silence. Velvet would¡¯ve preferred for her to scream and go off at her, but she knew that wasn¡¯t gonna happen. The director was always calm, no matter what the kids under her care did. She had the ¡®I¡¯m not mad, I¡¯m just disappointed¡¯ attitude. And that hurt Velvet more than a few shouts. ¡°I have a reason for that, just hear me out.¡± ¡°I¡¯m listening, Dobastro.¡± ¡°He was kicking stray kittens. The ones the kids are playing with everyday. Also,¡± She raised both hands in the air. ¡°I didn¡¯t harm him. I just paralyzed him for a bit. The kids did the harming.¡± ¡°Dobastro¡­¡± ¡°Do you know how vicious kids are? Even I was surprised!¡± ¡°He is the doctor¡¯s son.¡± ¡°Good for him!¡± She paused, ¡°Not good for the kittens, they have no doctor parents to cry to.¡± Madam Dorna sighed. ¡°I can¡¯t be blamed for that, the kids were clamoring for his life at that moment. I was even merciful. A few broken bones is nothing compared to-¡± ¡°Having your face melted?¡± Velvet shut up at that, realizing she messed up. ¡°I¡­ I want to heal you too someday.¡± ¡°We both know that is not possible. You want too many things.¡± ¡°Well, I am greedy.¡± Both of them stayed in silence. Madam Dorna grabbed a pot of tea and poured two cups, with how long they were talking, it had already gotten cold. Velvet hands got close to it, and, since Madam Dorna didn¡¯t say anything, she grazed the porcelain cups. Soon, steam was coming out of them. ¡°Anything else I need to know?¡± Since she was already caught, there was no reason to hide some other things. ¡°There¡¯s moth repellent on the wardrobes, rat repellent on the kitchen, I did some fertilizing spells on the lemon trees outside,¡± Madam Dorna¡¯s burnt eyebrows twitched. ¡°I put some strengthening spells on the shepherd¡¯s dog, I made a freezing room in the tavern, and gave a bee affection amulet to the beekeeper.¡± Now it was Madam Dorna¡¯s turn to play with her fingers. ¡°He kept on getting stung.¡± ¡°How¡­ How long have you had magic for?¡± ¡°Almost a month.¡± Madam Dorna¡¯s mouth twitched, and some cracks appeared on the porcelain cup. ¡°My, aren¡¯t you a hard worker?!¡± Chapter 2. The only one ¡°Multitasker, multitasker.¡± That was all Velvet had to say about that. Yes, she may have been too trigger happy with magic, but the most things she had done were amulets, sigils and paper figurines. None of those things were too difficult, dangerous or spiritually draining. Some magicians could melt mountains, and some could make living origami. Madam Dorna took a sip from the porcelain cup. ¡°Haven¡¯t you tried any harmful spells?¡± ¡°No one to try them on. But I know a few.¡± She didn¡¯t lie, in fact, she had been going alone in the woods to try and see if some bandits or dangerous beasts did approach her, but, the island of Casrey was very, very safe, at least the land part. And that was very, very good, just not for combat practice. And the good for nothing doctor¡¯s son went down with a hit¡­ ¡°Why?¡± said Madam Dorna, looking at her, an expression of sadness and tiredness in her face. Velvet took a deep breath, readying herself to finally reveal her future plans. ¡°I¡¯m planning to go to the Mergifari.¡± The Mergifari was, at first, a tower where a few mages gathered to store all their knowledge. At that time, the Inquisition was still running rampant in the region of Arhontissa, so not only was it hidden between the Unnamed Forest and the Mist Sea, making going there impossible without a guide. At present, the spells hiding it were long gone, and so its secrecy. The Mergifari was now an academy, taking young mages under their wings every three years, usually from noble or rich families, but no one was forbidden to try to enter. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°No.¡± Madam Dorna repeated. ¡°In two weeks I will be eighteen. Legally an adult. I will go to the Mergifari.¡± Velvet put her hands on the table and stood up. ¡°Velvet Consestella Dobastro.¡± Upon hearing her full name she sat down immediately. ¡°Mages are murderers, scammers, their loss of control costs thousands of lives every year.¡± She looked towards her. ¡°They took half of this town. I can excuse you playing with a few papers, but there¡¯s only one thing the Mergifari stands for. Corruption and power.¡± That was the reason the Inquisition had no place outside Mirel. They were exterminated by the Mergifari around a hundred years ago. Velvet took a deep breath, steading herself. ¡°That¡¯s why it is needed to even the field, right? If only bad people were able to do magic there would be nowhere to live.¡± Mage users were divided by a few things. From who they got their powers, how they brought magic from the conceptual realm to the real world and the type of familiar they had. Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. There were two ways to get powers, the first one was from pledging loyalty to a deity or being blessed by one. That one was easy, but took the freedom of the magician away. They had to follow a set of rules depending on the entity, pray and make altars in their name, and the wavering of faith or disobedience meant the loss of their powers as the most merciful exit, and death as the other. The good thing was, they couldn¡¯t lose control, since their accumulation of magic was controlled by the deity. Magicians of that type were called sorcerers, and the magic they used was of descendant origin. The other ones were the enchanters or enchantresses of the Primeval Sea. There were two types. Velvet, and most other magicians belonged there. In fact, around eighty percent of magicians were enchanters. It was the easiest way to get magic, it had the biggest range of powers and abilities, required no recurrying offerings, had no rules and was, in comparison to the other type, more powerful. The only limit was the magician''s own body. Nothing that good comes without an equally wrong thing, doesn¡¯t it? The Primeval Sea was the only one that would actively try to corrupt the mage. Since there was no higher entity to control the miasma accumulation, the mage had to be checking their state constantly and purify themselves once a month. If they didn¡¯t, or if they used too much magic in a short time, or had too many negative emotions at once, they would start losing control. That could end in three ways. Either losing your mind, becoming a witch, losing your body, becoming a catastrophe or losing both and becoming a calamity, and there was no going back from any. Witches, that¡¯s what corrupted mages were called, regardless of gender. Velvet had talked to some wandering mages, and they had said that the difference between mages and witches was like comparing crocodiles to otters. They couldn¡¯t live together with normal humans, so instead they lived in covens with other witches or alone. Witches also had a tendency to eat other mages and humans. Velvet¡¯s only close call with the miasma was when she opened the gate, a soft whisper in her ears, teaching her the way to summon a familiar and some spells. It was a seductive voice, almost making her forget she was drowning The opening of the Primeval Sea had to be done inside water, and ten percent of novices died there, the cause being the inability to break free of the voice. Once done, an eye will start to grow on the magician¡¯s body. That eye was called Esca. It would be barely open at first, like a sleeping person, and with time it would open. Then, another one will start growing. Most magicians had half Esca open, the ones with it fully open were professionals. Only the Mergifari¡¯s high command had two, with the regent having two and half. There were no magicians with three Escas. It was safe to say that two were the maximum possible to get. Of course, all of that was according to Velvet¡¯s knowledge, which was limited to what a few wandering mages had told her. And about the types of familiars and powers, they- ¡°For what?¡± Madam Dorna interrupted her thoughts. Velvet tilted her head. ¡°I¡¯ve been¡­ remembering things these past two months. About that day. The day the mountain melted.¡± She saw the faces of her parents again, burning. ¡°Almost a month ago, it was their tenth anniversary,¡± She leaned back on her chair, looked towards the ceiling, and rolled the cup of tea between her fingers. ¡°Do you know? No one gave any explanation, and it¡¯s been long since they stopped investigating.¡± Madam Dorna knew that, and she also knew that following that path was gonna get her doomed. ¡°It¡¯s been ten years, Velvet. Revenge won¡¯t fix anything.¡± Velvet looked at her surprised, as if that thought had never been in her mind. ¡°No, no. It¡¯s not about revenge.¡± She raised and waved a hand with carelessness. ¡°Care to elaborate?¡± ¡°I was the oldest kid back then. The others were¡­ Couger was five, and he is the second oldest.¡± ¡°And when I ask them, I realize that I¡¯m the only one that remembers that day.¡± ¡°The kids may be sad, their parents melted, but they don¡¯t remember the how, or the who.¡± Velvet looked inside the teacup, watching her reflection. ¡°Only I remember the man on top of the mountain.¡± Chapter 3. You didnt know Madam Dorna stood in silence. ¡°What do you mean?¡± she added after a while. ¡°He''s not dead.¡± ¡°What makes you so sure?¡± ¡°I had a dream.¡± The corners of Madam Dorna¡¯s mouth twitched again. ¡°Dreams are no credible sources of information.¡± Velvet waved a finger in front of her. ¡°Prophecies are a thing, and I¡¯m choosing to believe it.¡± Now it was the director¡¯s turn to lay back on the chair, take a deep breath and pinch between her eyes. ¡°What was the dream about?¡± ¡°I saw him, alive.¡± ¡°Where?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°When?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Madam Dorna let out a deep breath. ¡°What do you know?¡± ¡°That he is alive, I told you.¡± ¡°Velvet Consestella Dobastro.¡± She winced. ¡°Using my full name two times makes it less effective, just so you know.¡± ¡°So? Why does him being alive matter now?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ I just have this feeling that I can find him.¡± ¡°For what?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, I just have this itch that tells me to hurry¡­¡± Even if she had taken three years to dare to open the gate, she didn¡¯t feel the urge until those dreams started happening. ¡°Maybe I¡¯m having the¡­ what did you call it? The call of the deep.¡± She laughed a bit. Madam Dorna didn¡¯t. ¡°The bear poking instinct. No, the bringing a beehive to a party.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never done that.¡± ¡°Yet.¡± Velvet didn¡¯t discuss that, after all, she could calm the bees with a few affection spells and do it kinda easily. Of course, she had to pick a party where she didn¡¯t like anyone. Like the doctor''s son''s birthday party. ¡°Also I would like to have the option to return in the future, as a wandering magician.¡± Both of them kept quiet for a while, then, Madam Dorna sighted and got up, picking up her cane. Seeing her so small and fragile, Velvet realized they may not meet each other again. The director had been old since they knew each other, and it only got more evident the longer she took care of managing the orphanage. ¡°Then there¡¯s nothing else I can say.¡± She walked towards the door. ¡°Come, I will give you some things.¡± ¡°For what?¡± Still, she went behind her, picking up her hat. If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Madam Dorna said with sarcasm, before adding. ¡°You can¡¯t go to the city dressed like a villager, you will attract the attention of scammers and criminals. And that¡¯s without talking about the Mergifari.¡± You¡¯re blind, how do you even know what I¡¯m wearing¡­ Also, I kinda need someone to try offensive spells¡­ ¡°I¡¯m taking a boat to Dodon, I¡¯ll wear pants.¡± ¡°Just take it as an early birthday gift.¡± ¡°Uh, niceee! Though, I¡¯ve never seen you go to the city, how do you even have dresses for that?¡± ¡°They were a present for my niece.¡± Ah dammit. She bit her tongue, cursing herself. They went to Madam Dorna¡¯s bedroom. Velvet hadn¡¯t really been there in her life, only catching a glimpse from the window the day she climbed to the roof while playing hide and seek with the other kids, and, to say the truth¡­ The director was messy! Not in the having stuff on the floor way, but in the everything was¡­ tilted way. Paintings were crooked on the walls, the bed was not straight, and the wardrobe had a broken leg that was fixed with some books, but with more than necessary, making it lean a bit to the left. Possessed by a righteous cause, Velvet went sneakily towards one of the twisted paintings. ¡°Don¡¯t touch anything.¡± ¡°I¡¯m just fixing it.¡± ¡°Did I fix your problem causing tendencies?¡± ¡°I am innocent.¡± ¡°So are most instigators. Leave. The. Paintings.¡± Madam Dorna slammed her cane on Velvet¡¯s foot, who squeaked like a rat. ¡°You can¡¯t even see what is depicted on them!¡± She complained after being scolded, jumping away from her in one leg. ¡°Why don''t you go and see who painted it?¡± Velvet whined a bit more, but in the end she resigned and went to look at the oil painting. It was a depiction of a coast at night, with a woman in the sand, dressed in summer clothes, and a few rocks away in the sea. ¡°Ah, wait, that¡¯s the Caroon Beach, the one at the east of Casrey. Then, those two other islands at the distance are Prais and Coris.¡± Velvet was not interested in art, but her knowledge of the Charlampa Archipelago¡¯s geography was better than most adults. ¡°The signature.¡± ¡°I know, I know.¡± Written at the bottom right of the painting, in white paint, Ingri Dorna, 332 could be read. That was 43 years ago. Unless it was from the previous Maquia, which she doubted, then, that meant¡­ ¡°What is my first name, Velvet?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Velvet.¡± ¡°... I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you want to go to the unknown like crazy just now? Go on, take a step in the dark and guess.¡± Velvet let out a subtle groan. ¡°Is it Ingri?¡± ¡°Wrong.¡± She hit her foot once again with her cane. ¡°That was my late husband¡¯s name.¡± ¡°Auch! You treacherous hag!¡± She saw Madam Dorna pulling back her cane again and grinning at her. ¡°I¡¯m just giving you a few late lessons on believing everything you see. Especially if you plan on going to that place.¡± Madam Dorna stopped messing with her and went to the wardrobe, ¡°Some clues will be fake, and following a false trail can end up worse than a few hits. Especially with magic.¡± While she was speaking, she was pulling out pieces of clothes and throwing them on the bed. ¡°Go try the ones that are your size.¡± ¡°Hm-hm.¡± Checking on the pile of clothes, she started picking the ones that suit her taste. Still, city clothes were mostly dark colored or brown, to prevent the dust and smoke stains of the streets and factories from being too visible. In the end, she settled for a brown skirt with a white, high collared blouse, black leather boots (Velvet felt the tip and back of the shoes kinda hard, then she realized they had metal inside, probably for self defense), brown leather gloves and a brown capelet with a blue ribbon and inner pockets. Changing her clothes, she stared at her reflection on a cracked mirror (also tilted) and made different poses. The new clothes, coupled with her fair skin, long orange hair and blue eyes, made her easily pass as a middle class citizen. Except¡­ ¡°No hat?¡± She asked, after Madam Dorna finished pulling clothes and instead gave her an old suitcase. ¡°She didn¡¯t like hats.¡± ¡°What a bad taste.¡± Velvet whispered, calculating how much money she could spend to buy one that combined with her new clothes. After a few seconds, she just decided to customize the straw hat she had right now. A good hat costs good money, after all. ¡°I would ask you how I look, but you just can¡¯t see how great I am.¡± She turned toward her hat. ¡°Hyde, tell me how good I look.¡± ¡°You look good.¡± A voice that made Madam Dorna turn around suddenly came from behind the ribbon. ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡± ¡°Ah, I forgot to tell you I summoned a familiar¡­ guess you didn¡¯t know.¡± ¡°Velvet.¡± Chapter 4. Demon of Knowledge ¡°Consestella Dobastro, yes, that¡¯s me.¡± She finished, smiling at the sigh that she got as an answer. ¡°And what is¡­ your familiar?¡± ¡°Oh, a spider.¡± The hand holding Madam Dorna¡¯s cane tightened. ¡°The big, crawling ones that you hate and squish at every opportunity.¡± ¡°...¡± The next thing she knew was that Madam Dorna had kicked her, her hat and the old suitcase out of the room before closing the door. ¡°That was fast¡­¡± Velvet picked her hat from the floor, shaking off the dust. Two of Hyde¡¯s legs were peeking from behind the ribbon¡¯s shadow, and she poked them, making them go back to hiding. ¡­ A week ago. It was night, the moon was new, and the stars would be the only light source in the woods were it not for the lamp Velvet had ¡°rented¡± from Madam Dorna. Going to the clearing she had found a few days ago, she started setting up an altar. She put eight candles in a circular formation, not lighting them on, working only under the lights of the lamp and the stars. Then, she pushed them on the ground, burying the lower half of each candle. Once done, she opened one of the two boxes she was carrying with her, pulling out a few books and an ink bottle. Riiip. She ripped out the pages, filling the circle with them. To call a demon of knowledge, one must offer knowledge. Every magician got information about summoning a familiar when they gazed inside the Primeval Sea for the first time, but trying to summon it was their own choice. For sorcerers, most starting options were demons, unless they had some grimoires with alternate summonings. That, or having an hereditary familiar. Velvet had gotten kinda lucky, her possible familiar only needing some books, ink and bugs, but she had been told histories of some requiring human sacrifices. If the initial familiar is supposed to combine with the magician, I just can¡¯t imagine how you have to be to get one of those¡­ Having finished ripping the first book, she went to the second, and soon, the third and last, filling the circle with pages, making it impossible to see the earth below. Once done, she went out of the circle, picked the ink bottle and started walking slowly around it, starting from the south, to the west, the opposite to how the sun rose. Then, she started chanting. ¡°Andras,¡± She flicked her hand, the first candle catching light. ¡°Apolyon,¡± The second one did the same. ¡°Andras,¡± She repeated, now igniting the third. ¡°Apolyon.¡± The fourth. ¡°Andras,¡± The fifth. The fire started catching a green hue. ¡°Apolyon.¡± Andras Apolyon. That was the name of the Father of hell. Demons and devils alike bowed to Him. Calling His name before a summoning served as warning to the entity being called, so that it didn¡¯t kill the magician the moment it was summoned. Velvet did think it was similar to how children started behaving once they were threatened by calling their parents. Four times, four times had His name to be fully uttered before starting the summoning. Velvet had just said the last one. She let out a shaky breath, opening the ink bottle. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. ¡°From the center,¡± She spilled ink in a line, on top of the pages. ¡°To below.¡± Another. Center and below referred to the realms. The center meant the human, material realm, below meant hell. Beyond was for ghosts, between was for nature spirits or fae, above was for deities. ¡°From the bound¡­ to the unfathomable.¡± ¡°From the inconnexed¡­to the threads of knowledge.¡± As she was chanting, she kept on spilling ink on straight lines on top of the papers, drawing something kinda resembling a black spider web. ¡°From Velvet Consestella Dobastro¡­ to Ars Chryses.¡± She picked up the other box, the inside filled to the brim with worms of different colors and sizes. She had handpicked the juiciest and chubbiest of them all. Then, she poured them upon the papers, and waited. ¡°I give my offerings.¡± For a few seconds, nothing could be heard aside from the crawling of the worms and the cracking of the candles, until the green fire changed to gold, and the bugs started being buried with the papers in a spiral motion, as if they were on top of quicksand. After a while, only a hole remained. Devils and demons couldn''t walk on earth without a flesh passage. Summoning a devil consisted in bringing their realm to the magician¡¯s location so that they could enter. Devils lived on separated realms one from another, with a variable number of demons under their wings, so there was no possibility of dragging half of hell towards oneself in a summon. Velvet walked forward, and jumped inside. Entering a different realm was like falling in cold water in the middle of a heatwave. And then falling against the floor. The first thing Velvet noticed was how dark and cramped it was. Like being inside a small cave, her shoulders were touching roots, stones and soil on both sides. The second thing was how humid the air was and how suffocating was the ambience. She started caressing the walls, trying to find the direction she should go. After a bit of touching, she noticed a small crack, and started dragging herself towards it. Step by step, she was making progress. Just out of curiosity, she tried to go back the way she came, but found that the hole she just passed didn¡¯t exist. There was no exit. Keeping on pushing herself forward, each step felt harder and tighter. The walls now pressed on her even more, making it difficult to even breathe. Velvet extended one arm as far as she could, trying to grab a rock or a root to pull herself, but it was impossible. Her chest hurt from being constricted between the walls. She took the biggest breath she could, and then¡­ ¡°Andras Apolyon, Andras Apolyon, An-¡± Something, small and with many legs walked over her extended arm, starting from her hand and going down towards her face. Since everything was dark, she just felt it stop in front of her mouth. Velvet shut her mouth, not wanting the thing to crawl further. ¡°Seems you hit a dead end. Don¡¯t you know any shrinking spells?¡± The thing spoke, not moving anymore. Velvet stood in silence, the pressure of the walls not decreasing. ¡°No, I can¡­¡± She said after a moment, making some paper figurines come out of her skin and start digging. Unfortunately for her, rock did beat paper this time. The figurines tried to dig until they wrinkled, before giving up and going back to her. Both of them stood in silence again. ¡°If you have given up already on getting a devil as familiar, I am interested.¡± That made Velvet want to cry. She knew she wasn¡¯t even half across this realm, and she had already gotten stuck. That meant the demon in front of her was a lesser one. Still, Velvet wasn¡¯t going to be picky, she already felt the need of air, so, even if it meant ending this halfway, she already made her pick. The good thing was that lesser demons were easier to take back to the normal realm than powerful ones. Gotta be positive around here¡­ Velvet sighed. ¡°Yes, okay.¡± She opened her mouth slowly, and the thing crawled inside, then, she felt a bite on her tongue, the poison spreading fast on her blood. Her thoughts went dark, and she fainted. ¡­ When Velvet opened her eyes again, she was on top of the papers, the candles were extinguished and something was moving inside her mouth. Sitting upright, she spit it in her lap. Under the lights of the stars, she saw the dark blob fall on her dress, increasing to twice its size, transforming into a black spider with golden and blue symbols decorating its skin. Then the spider saw her. And then made a spider bow. ¡°My name is Hyde, it is a pleasure to become your familiar.¡± Chapter 5. Once a month Honestly, by the way it behaved, Velvet saw Hyde more as an hermit crab than a spider. Anyway, she now had Madam Dorna''s approval to go to the Mergifari, whose doors would open in three weeks. Going from Casrey to the Mergifari took two weeks at least. First she needed to take a boat from Casrey to Coris, and from Coris to Dodon. Dodon was the biggest island of the Charlampa Archipelago, and the most important, almost 50 times the size of Casrey. From there, she needed to take the ferry to Limani Island. Limani Island wasn¡¯t part of the Charlampa Archipelago. It was an island in the middle of the ocean, halfway to the Mergifari, and served as a stop for cargo ships, airships and ferries. Once a week, it sent provisions to the Mergifari on a dirigible, since it was impossible to do so from the sea. That was the one Velvet had to take. That was one of the reasons she wanted Madam Dorna¡¯s approval. Without it, she would¡¯ve had to wait until she was 18, only to have a week to do all that trip, probably arriving late. ¡°Still, I better be going soon.¡± She wasn¡¯t gonna stay idle for a week and then let a sudden storm, a migrating marine monster or a ship wreckage waste a few days and make her lose the time she had won. Having her yes, she had to go. Today was late, so she could make her baggage, say a few goodbyes and leave Casrey tomorrow morning with the fisherman. Velvet praised herself and went to her bedroom. Well, a shared bedroom, because three other kids lived there. No one was inside, which was perfect for her, since she planned on using magic to expand the insides of the suitcase, and, as much as she loved them, they were a big distraction. Opening the suitcase on top of her bed, she went to pack her things: hats, some talismans, the grimoire she had started three years ago and was halfway done, underwear and two sets of clothing. ¡°Ah, I left my old dress.¡± She pulled out one of the two sets, changed her clothes to a simple light green dress and stored the city clothes. After all, she didn¡¯t need them until arriving to Dodon, and wearing them now was a waste. Looking at the half filled suitcase in pity, Velvet was disappointed. ¡°Almost all of my belongings, and it¡¯s not even filled¡­¡± She itched to do some magic, but the lack of need was evident. ¡°I should pack some books.¡± ¡°You are from the path of knowledge, made to remember everything read.¡± Hyde said from inside the hat. Velvet grimaced, ¡°I should pack some food.¡± ¡°No need, you already know the taste of the food here, for your progression is better to try new things.¡± ¡°I should pack a beehive, with you inside.¡± ¡°If bees could breathe inside a suitcase, that¡¯ll be a good idea.¡± Velvet gave up, closing the suitcase and throwing herself on the bed. ¡°Weren¡¯t you going to say goodbyes?¡± ¡°Yes, yes, maybe later.¡± A minute later, someone running toward her room could be heard. Bam! The door opened with a hit. ¡°Velvet!¡± The culprit, a short kid with wild black hair and simple clothes, entered with no invitation. ¡°Couger.¡± She saluted her second in command, without getting up. If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°Ordian¡¯s gang have taken control of the old treehouse, and we can''t get them out!¡° ¡°Who is Ordian?¡± ¡°The doctor¡¯s son!¡± Couger jumped when Velvet raised suddenly. ¡°Bet.¡± ¡­ The buzzing of the angry bees was almost as deafening as the screamings that were running away from them, both progressively getting lost in the forest, towards the river. ¡°Oh, going to take a bath? They are getting smarter.¡± Velvet was sitting on a rock, her itch to do magic satiated. ¡°That will show them!¡± Couger cheered. ¡°Yes, who would have thought that a wild bee swarm would be inside the treehouse? It¡¯s such a lucky thing none of you were inside at that moment.¡± Some of the orphanage children looked at Velvet, wanting to add something, but she smiled at them. ¡°Because that¡¯s what happened.¡± ¡°Yeah!¡± Couger added. ¡°They were too noisy and angered the wild bees!¡± The kids understood the meaning, and started agreeing with them. Now that Velvet knew that none of them had betrayed her trust, she was confident. ¡°Oh, by the way, tomorrow I¡¯m going on a trip. Celia is the boss now.¡± A young girl, 14 years of age, received surprised glares while being surprised herself. Then she started crying. ¡°Nooo, Velvet! Don¡¯t leave!¡± The girl threw herself onto Velvet, crying on her dress. When she received no response, she suddenly stopped crying and looked up. You¡¯re gonna be soooo good at emotional manipulation Velvet grinned back at her, picking her up. ¡°Nooo, Velvet has to leave on a mission.¡± She answered in the same tone, using a lifting spell to throw Celia a few meters upwards before grabbing her again. The girl screamed, seemingly in panic. ¡°My little actress, I¡¯m gonna miss you so much.¡± Celia gave her a dissimulated glare, pinching her arm. ¡°Velvet you bully!¡± Celia answered angrily, being put down, then Velvet pulled her ear a bit before releasing her. ¡°Alright! Who wants to fly next?¡± ¡°Me! Me! Me!¡± Happy screams were heard, the notice of Velvet departing temporarily forgotten. ¡­ After playing with the children and having dinner, night had already caught up with them. Later, laying in her bed, Velvet waited until everyone was asleep. At midnight, she opened her eyes, got out of bed, climbed down the window and went to the forest. There was something she still had to do before leaving Casrey, after all. It wasn¡¯t something she couldn¡¯t do during the trip, but it was better to take it off the list for a month at least. Casrey was a small island, but that didn¡¯t mean it was empty except for the village and the beach in Madam Dorna¡¯s painting. It also had a mountain at the center, and a precipice, among other things. On the mountain, there were several caves, and one of them had a little lake. That¡¯s the one Velvet went to. Since she had obtained magic almost a month ago, she still hadn¡¯t tried to purify her body of the miasma. Even if her body wasn¡¯t that poisoned at this moment, she preferred to do it in a familiar place. This lake was, after all, the place where she opened her Esca. Taking off her clothes, she dipped her feet in the cold, freezing water, shuddering. Staying like that for a moment, she turned towards her pile of neatly folded clothes. ¡°Do I have to just¡­ dive, shake the Esca and the miasma will go out on its own?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t shake anything, just open it and it will go out on its own.¡± Velvet nodded, entered the water and swam to the bottom. The lake wasn¡¯t too deep, at most it had two meters to the bottom, and that was more than enough. Some magicians used bathtubs, after all. Taking a momentary break, she turned and laid back on the soil, before staring at her hand, and opening her Esca. Even if it looked like an eye, the Esca was actually covering almost every single part of the magician''s body. From their skin, to their meat, bones and soul. Even the hair, if they had any, wasn¡¯t left out. If anything, the barely open eye that Velvet had could be considered an outlet. Once opened, a black mist started pouring out of her body. Most of it went out from the Esca, but some still poured from the pores in her skin, her mouth and even her eyes. It tasted like rotten meat. Not that she had ever eaten rotten meat, but the way it tasted made her remember the smell of the dead, maggot filled carcasses of dead animals found in the forest. And yet, considering she was underwater, Velvet tried not to gag, not wanting a repeat of the other time. After a minute, the black mist stopped coming out of her body, and she came out to the surface as fast as she could, coughing and taking deep breaths. Taking some clean water in her hands, she cleansed her mouth, gargling and trying to get rid of the aftertaste. ¡°And don¡¯t forget,¡± She heard Hyde¡¯s mocking tone. ¡°This is something you will have to do once a month, the rest of your life.¡± Chapter 6. Road ¡°If you weren¡¯t inside one of my favorite hats right now, I would drown you.¡± ¡°Every hat you own is your favorite hat.¡± ¡°I have very good taste in hats. The same can¡¯t be said for familiars.¡± She got out of the water, grabbed a towel she had brought and started to dry herself. In the end, she used up spells to dry her hair. Yawning, she looked outside the cave at the moon, mentally parting the sky, trying to figure out how late it was. It was around 2am. ¡°I have to wake up at five to leave with the fisherman¡­¡± She muttered with pity, resigned to drown herself in coffee in a few hours. But now, she could still go back and take a short rest. ¡­ It was dark, making it almost impossible to see in front of her. It was devoid of sound, not letting her listen to her own breath. It was scentless and, even if she could see the blood on the altar, no metallic smell went to her nose. It was empty, and yet he was here. Recognizing the place, she knew she was dreaming. She looked to the altar. Chained in pitch black chains to the nothingness that surrounded both of them, laid the shackled man. Always bleeding from the places in his body where the chains were drilled, he made no acknowledgement of her presence. Velvet walked towards him, but, no matter how much she walked, she never got any closer. ¡°You know? I¡¯m going to the Mergifari.¡± No sound could be heard, even when she felt her vocal cords vibrating. Even then, he made no motion of having heard her. ¡°I¡¯ll pass by Dodon, I¡¯ve read that they sell exquisite hats there. I was thinking of buying some, but they cost four auris each.¡± ¡°I could buy one, but I still need all the money I can get, sooo¡­¡± She rambled on and on. After all, there was nothing else to do. He didn¡¯t speak or look at Velvet. Her whole dream was just staying there next to him at the bottom of the abyss. If she didn¡¯t see his chest move slowly, she would¡¯ve presumed him dead. That¡¯s all her dream was about, she didn¡¯t lie to Madam Dorna when she said she didn¡¯t know anything. After all, here, nothing could be seen, nothing could be heard, and nothing could be smelled. ¡­ ¡°Good morning Velvet!¡± A sharp pain erupted from her stomach. ¡°Morning, morning, MORNING!¡± ¡°Celia!¡± She answered, smiling at her while showing her teeth. Kids really are dead set on revenge, aren¡¯t they? ¡°Don¡¯t you have to rise up early today?¡± Celia, the newly appointed boss, was sitting on her stomach, a smug grin on her face. ¡°Ugh¡­¡± Not an early riser, Velvet remained motionless on the bed. ¡°Bring me a coffee.¡± Knowing that Celia would probably drop it in her face, she raised, pushing the kid off her and onto the floor. ¡°No, no, forget it.¡± ¡°Couger is waiting for you outside.¡± You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. Right. Couger did work for the fisherwoman, helping her with the tasks that needed muscle. Velvet didn¡¯t want to make him late, so she went to the shared bathroom to get ready, leaving her suitcase with Celia in the room. Since she had to travel in a boat, she dressed up in brown linen pants, with a white simple shirt, the boots that Madam Dorna gifted her and the hat with Hyde inside. When she was almost finished, a scream came from there, and Velvet laughed. Going back to her room, smoke of various colors was coming out of it. ¡°My, somebody got caught red handed~.¡± Mocking Celia¡¯s appearance, Velvet grabbed her suitcase and started leaving, whistling in the most annoying way she could. ¡°Anyway, I¡¯m late, byeee.¡± ¡°Wait, waaait!¡± The poor thief, covered in paint of multiple colors, went after her. ¡°Velvet you ass-! At least take the paint off!¡± Feeling wronged and ignored, she threatened. ¡°I¡¯ll tell Madam Dorna and Sister Erin!¡± ¡°Sigh, fineeeee.¡± Dragging the last word, she gave an innocent, well meant, cute smile. ¡°That spell is called A thirty good deeds¡± she made a pause, letting that sink. ¡°If you want the paint gone, you need to do thirty good deeds.¡± She headpatted Celia. ¡°I¡¯m sure you will be an amazing boss. Because¡­¡± She leaned over to Celia¡¯s eye level. ¡°Every bad deed will take you back three good ones. Don¡¯t worry, they will never be more than thirty at the same time.¡± Giving her one last headpat, and ignoring her shocked face, she turned and left towards the orphanage exit, suitcase in hand. ¡°Velvet!¡± She heard cursing behind her. ¡°I swear I will learn magic someday, and I will give you a rat¡¯s tail! And donkey ears! And, and¡­!¡± Celia¡¯s voice lost strength the more Velvet got away. In the end, she gave up, kicked the floor and went back to bed. She wasn¡¯t the one that had to pick a ship, after all. Couger was waiting at the exit, fidgeting with an anxious expression. He screeched and jumped when Velvet suddenly jumped at him from behind. ¡°Stop screaming, it¡¯s just me.¡± Recovering from the fright, Couger opened his mouth like a fish. ¡°I- You¡­ Velvet! We¡¯re going late, cmon!¡± He grabbed her arm, tugging her along. ¡°Really? I didn¡¯t hear no bell.¡± The town had a belltower to tell the passage of time, which had yet to sound. Still, that didn¡¯t mean they had the time to dilly dally. ¡°Five minutes left.¡± Couger was used to waking up and going to the harbor every day, so he had almost developed an inner clock towards his job. That was Velvet¡¯s theory. ¡°Oh¡­¡± Letting herself be dragged, Velvet picked up her pace. ¡°That¡¯s bad, the road takes longer than that.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why we have to run!¡± ¡°Yes, you¡¯re right¡­ Unless.¡± Feeling a chill run through his spine, Couger tried to play deaf. But then Velvet just kept walking in silence without adding anything else, he started having some inner argument. The fear of magic in one hand, the curiosity of it in the other. Curiosity killed the cat, but hell be damned, that cat probably died smiling. ¡°Unless?¡± Turning his face to see Velvet, he almost started crying when a big, happy smile welcomed him. ¡°Soooo,¡± She started, grabbing his arm. Couger fighted the instinct to flee. ¡°There¡¯s this new spell that Hyde taught me that I¡¯ve been wanting to try¡­ Oh, try to hold your breath.¡± He did so almost instantaneously, then he felt his surroundings blurring, the trees and rocks that filled the path becoming less and less defined, as if everything went underwater. Then, dragging him along, Velvet took a step. His surroundings started moving, along with them. Even though they were walking, the trees they passed moved as if they were running. Around a minute and half later, Velvet stopped, making the surroundings back to normal. Taking a breath to recover from the dizziness, Couger massaged his temples. ¡°Why did you stop? I can hold three minutes underwater.¡± He felt Velvet flinch, realizing they stopped because she couldn''t maintain that spell too long. Coughing a bit, he apologized. ¡°S-Still! We¡¯re halfway done, we can walk the remaining path!¡± ¡°I¡¯ll take a minute or two to recuperate, then we will do it again.¡± They kept walking, no longer pressed by the time. Velvet started calculating. She assumed that the spell could be maintained for three minutes, with the condition of her being alone. Carrying someone did decrease the duration by a third, which was a significant loss. Still, knowing her limits was good, since that would allow her to plan beforehand in case trouble came to her. Chapter 7. Bait After two minutes, Velvet used the spell again, making the ten minute trip take five minutes, letting them arrive on time. The harbor was already lively, illuminated with gas lamps that covered the streets and were carried by some workers. It was still too soon for the sun to rise, yet not for the sailors and fishermen. As Velvet and Couger were walking towards the Algae, the workers were already carrying the fishing nets, boxes and some crew members with hangovers inside the boats. Casrey, being an island, had a lot of sea related work; in fact, Velvet had worked as a lighthouse keeper, as a fisherwoman and as a fishing net fixer. If anything, one of the few harbor jobs she hadn¡¯t done yet was working at the tavern, only because the owner was very adamant about not hiring minors. To tell the truth, the job she liked least was fishing at sea. Fishing on the Whispering Sea was dangerous, and, therefore, all the ships had iron spikes covering the hull, to prevent sea monsters like morgens, fuaths or others from climbing to the decks. Also, some crew members carried shotguns, the strongest of them carrying harpoons that were bigger than Couger to kill any threat. Sea hunting was a considerably high paying job, but, looking at the number of people on the harbor that had prosthetic arms, legs, or had lost part of the face made Velvet always go towards other jobs. She even tried to convince Couger to change occupations, but he always refused. Arriving at the Algae, the ship Velvet had to take, they were greeted by the captain, an old, scrawny woman with a glass eye and a scar crossing it, loading some empty boxes in an old, scrawny boat. Upon seeing her, Couger rushed to help with the load. ¡°Witch.¡± She called Velvet in a coarse tone, once she got closer. ¡°Hag.¡± Velvet answered in the same tone. The old crone scoffed. ¡°You better not bring misfortune upon my ship, you harbinger of madness.¡± ¡°Any other things to call me?¡± Velvet looked at the crew. ¡°I¡¯ll say misfortune hit you before I did. Someone is missing.¡± ¡°Oswald. A sea snake got¡¯im. Ripped his head clean off.¡± Viroa, the Algae captain, pulled out a pipe and a tobacco box from her clothes, tossing them to Velvet. ¡°Shit.¡± She said, picking the things before opening the box and proceeding to fill the pipe. ¡°He was¡­ twenty-three? And he was getting married too¡­¡± Finishing readying the pipe, she gave it back to Viroa. ¡°Light it up. My arthritis is getting worse every day.¡± Velvet snapped her fingers, lighting it up. The old woman put the pipe in her mouth with trembling fingers, before climbing to the ship, followed by Velvet and the rest of the crew. Couger went next to her on the deck, now carrying a shotgun half his size. Velvet refrained from commenting on it. Still, she readied herself, pulling out some paper figurines. After some minutes, the ship left the harbor, going into the sea. The Whispering Sea was called that for the unexplained murmur that sometimes came from air bubbles that broke the sea surface every now and then. It was unintelligible, in an unknown language, and it happened across all the Charlampa Archipelago. A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. Some valiant but foolish scholars had tried to get to the bottom of the matter, and the sea, but the deeper waters were, quoting their words ¡®Not worth the investment¡¯. One of those bubbles arose next to the boat, popping. ¡°Hyde,¡± The link between magicians and their familiars allowed them to talk telepathically, so no one could eavesdrop. ¡°Do you know what the bubble says?¡± ¡°No, but I can tell a few things,¡± He paused. ¡°The language spoken is an ancient type of Nekromnisikakia.¡± ¡°Nekro means death, right?¡± ¡°Right. Death and grudge. The one speaking is a wronged corpse.¡± ¡°... A pretty big corpse then, since it covers all the sea.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± After another brief pause, he added. ¡°Nothing you have the power to worry or care about.¡± ¡°Wasn¡¯t going to.¡± Something moving below the waves put an end to their conversation. She saw Couger raising the shotgun towards it. They made eye contact, and Velvet threw one of her paper figurines on top of one of the spikes that surrounded the ship. The figurine raised its arms and walked on top of the stake. Arriving on the tip, it leaned towards the waves, before turning a red color and started smelling like blood. At the next second, something lunged unto it, falling for the trap and impaling its mouth on the stake. Couger, shotgun ready, shot its body, blowing a hole in its side before tumbling backwards at the gun¡¯s recoil. Due to the position and its hard skin, that wasn¡¯t enough to kill the fuath, which managed to grab the iron sides of the ship, trying to pull its head away from the stake. Interrupting its escape, the paper figurines controlled by Velvet slapped the monster¡¯s head, keeping it stuck to the stake and blinding it. Couger, having recovered from the recoil, and other crew members used that time to stab the wound open from the shot with spears, trying to pierce its heavily protected heart. Garon, the strongest member of the Algae, pushed them away, carrying one of the giant harpoons that Velvet had seen, before directing the weapon¡¯s end towards the fuath¡¯s core. Click. The arrow was at one moment situated on the handle, and, in the next, it had pierced the monster¡¯s body from side to side, with so much strength it ripped the head, with Velvet paper figurines from the stake, all of them disappearing under the sea. The iron chain that connected the arrow to the rest of the weapon went next, making a deafening sound. Claclaclaclac. Garon walked backwards, before plunging the weapon on a mechanism on the deck, made to hold the harpoon. ¡°Hold onto something.¡± Couger warned her, before Garon activated something in the weapon that stopped the chain dispenser, and made the whole ship tumble. Then, the chain started being dragged back. Velvet had used some magic to not fall to the water, falling instead on her ass on the deck¡¯s floor. She wasn¡¯t hurt, though. Never bathing on the relief of a successful catch, every single member of the Algae got ready again, not planning to fall prey to some monster smarter than the fuath that knew when to strike. Like the morgen, for example. Two good minutes later, a body got dragged out the water, being pulled first next to the ship, and, after some checks, onto the ship. Fuaths were some ugly bastards, that¡¯s how Velvet would describe them. At two and half meters long, they looked like big, fish skinned, gray greenish humans to drunken sailors. Until one saw the head. They had extremely big, white eyes on top of their head, made to stalk the prey on the surface from below the waves. Their mouth occupied almost all of the rest of the face. It was big, filled with ten to twenty centimeter teeth, and they had around a hundred teeth. A single bite could dismember anyone. But that made catching them considerably easier than other things, since they bit anything on their path, including obvious bait. Their meat was also delicious, and they sold for quite the sum. Chapter 8. Cruel mistress It was at this moment that Velvet realized she didn¡¯t eat anything for breakfast. And trying to eat anything that smelled a bit tasty on the sea was suicidal. Fuaths also couldn¡¯t be eaten raw. She could go and bother Viroa to give her some sunflower seeds, but being a problem in the middle of the sea wasn¡¯t the smartest idea. Sighing in self pity, Velvet went to watch the crew moving the fuath towards the ship hold, to put it inside a box filled with ice. ¡°Velvet,¡± Couger called her. ¡°Captain Viroa is calling for you.¡± ¡°Coming~¡± She went to the ship¡¯s wheel, where the captain was giving orders. Viroa was there, sometimes changing the course of the ship, listening to the radio that was making noise every now and then in Morse Code next to her. Velvet could discern the few words ¡®Lyngbakr Sighted Southeast Dodon¡¯. She cursed internally. Even if she had anticipated that one of the big monsters could appear, this one was one of the annoying ones. Not the especially dangerous kind, that one was dominated by the Cirein-Cr¨°in, but the Lyngbakr had the laziest personality of them, being a roadblock just at the middle of Velvet¡äs journey. After all, the ferry she had to take from Dodon to Limani Island passed that zone. The Lyngbakr was of the delusion paradigm. A paradigm meant the basic set of abilities that any magical creature or magician had. It wasn¡¯t an absolute description, since they worked more as guides than rules. For example, Velvet pertained to the knowledge paradigm, which was the middle ground between the greed paradigm and the apathy paradigm, same as Hyde. That gave them the ability to remember everything they read, heard, saw or smelled, without taking notes. It was also the reason for Velvet¡¯s paper magic. Remembering everything would make anyone crazy, that¡¯s where the apathy did its part, making Velvet not care or notice everything she recorded unless she wanted to remember. That was considered a passive skill. Aside from that, the initial abilities of the knowledge paradigm included the control of up to ten paper figurines that could serve as an expansion of the magician senses and the ease to make talismans and charms. That was an active skill. For example, the prank she pulled on Celia was easy to do, since Velvet just put a talisman under the suitcase, but the spell to travel from the orphanage to the harbor, called ¡®Fast stroll¡¯ was out of her paradigm, so not only the time she could use it for was reduced, but the act of carrying someone reduced it even more. If someone from the sloth paradigm or from adjacent ones did that spell, not only it could be maintained for ten minutes or more, but carrying someone may even only affect one or two minutes. There were an unknown number of paradigms, some being a noble family¡¯s secret, some being discovered because of some magician¡¯s experiment. Velvet knew around fifteen of them, but Hyde had said that trying to count them was meaningless, and that by mixing two existing ones, you could get a third. In the magic world, magicians usually just considered anything outside the ten original ones a subclass. The delusion paradigm was a subclass between the sloth paradigm and the lust paradigm. In the Lyngbakr case, it faked being an island, maintaining that appearance a month or two, trying to cheat some ships to rest on it. Of course, sailors were not that dumb, no one willing to stop on an unknown island, but that meant nothing to the Lyngbakr, since its abilities not only tricked the eyes. If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. Seeing the island filled anyone unfortunate enough with a desire to go there, to the point of losing their minds. That¡¯s why the sailor that acted as a look-out was usually one of the weakest, so that reducing and tying them up was easier. The effects of seeing the Lyngbakr weren¡¯t eternal, usually just going after a few hours. Still, no ship would sail without someone watching for danger, so the emergence of it basically stopped any movement of ships in the zone. In summary, attracting sailors just from sight was a passive skill. Camouflaging as an island was an active skill. Being a colossal monster was just a bonus that made it almost unkillable and unmovable. That was why Velvet hated it so much right now. ¡°What a face.¡± Viroa mocked, knowing she didn¡¯t need to translate the message. ¡°Fate really is a cruel mistress.¡± ¡°Touch¨¦.¡± Velvet smiled, recovering instantly from the devastating news, at least enough to not let Viroa rejoice on her troubles. ¡°Maybe it just stays there for a week.¡± ¡°Yes, were it to eat at least two ships and its crew, which is impossible since the sea route is closed now.¡± ¡°The air route isn¡¯t? Then I can still pick the dirigible.¡± She saw Viroa¡¯s grin grow. ¡°Do you even have enough money?¡± Velvet smiled. ¡°Nope! I was expecting you to lend me some!¡± Now it was the captain¡¯s turn to scoff. ¡°Sponsor this poor magician, I am but a great investment.¡± ¡°Since when?¡± ¡°Since always! I have been an essential member of the Algae since its foundation!¡± ¡°You worked here for a day. Years ago.¡± Velvet didn¡¯t give up, she knew Viroa wanted something, since she had called her here. She was just playing along until the other part stopped stalling. ¡°You always talk about young talent. I am the youngest talent you were waiting for.¡± ¡°You are almost an adult. And let¡¯s not forget that the day you worked here, you puked, and spent the day acting as part of the cargo.¡± Changing method it is, then. ¡°Sniff.¡± Velvet cried wolf, falling on her knees. ¡°That just means my only option is to sell my body.¡± She threw her hands in the air before covering her face with them. ¡°Madam Dorna warned me about the lecherous men in the city, but to think betrayal will come from my own kin!¡± ¡°Velvet.¡± ¡°I am but a leaf upon fate¡¯s hands, directed towards a burning forest of my own making.¡± ¡°Velvet Consestella Dobastro.¡± ¡°Sniff sniff. What do you want, oh cursed woman?¡± ¡°I want you to be done.¡± ¡°I am done, finished, ended, concluded, finalized.¡± Viroa sighed, taking a puff from her pipe. ¡°I can give you a way to board the airship free of charge.¡± Velvet opened an eye, staring at her from between her fingers ¡°Legally?¡± ¡°Yes, someone working there owes me a few favors.¡± Recovering waaay too fast, she jumped to her feet. ¡°I knew you had a heart under all that wrinkled, hard skin!¡± ¡°I am reconsidering.¡± ¡°No you¡¯re nooot!¡± After sighing again, the captain added. ¡°Not for free. There¡¯s something I want you to do.¡± ¡°Ask anything you want, consider it done. Need me to bless the Algae? Give you a hundred amulets? Clean some fish? Kill someone?¡± She said the last one as a joke, but when Viroa didn¡¯t deny it, Velvet¡¯s smile froze. ¡°You don''t have the strength to do it now. Maybe never¡± She kept on making pauses to smoke, making Velvet anxious. ¡°But, if one day, if one single day, even if just for a moment, you have the opportunity¡­¡± Stop smoking and finish talking dammit! Velvet wanted to scream. ¡°I want you to kill Valdimar Cetus.¡± Chapter 9. Profitable business ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t know who that is.¡± Velvet admitted. She had never killed someone, but she knew that the path she was taking wasn¡¯t clean of blood. Sooner or later, her hands would no longer be clean. ¡°Good. Just remember his name.¡± She coughed, before letting out a coarse laugh. ¡°Not like you can ever forget.¡± Velvet was gonna retort when Couger came towards them running. ¡°Look, that kid never once puked.¡± Viroa didn¡¯t waste a moment to make her remember that memory once again. ¡°Sponsor him then. Support the young talent!¡± When he was close enough, he started talking. ¡°We are deploying the nets, there¡¯s a bunch of fishes ahead.¡± ¡°Couger,¡± Velvet started. ¡°Captain Viroa says you are the best marine she ever had~ You should ask for a raise.¡± Take that, you greedy hag. The greed paradigm would suit you the best. Velvet felt an intense joy seeing the sour face Viroa made, in comparison to the surprised but extremely happy face Couger made. She knew that Viroa wouldn¡¯t destroy Couger hopes, so she targeted the point that was going to bother her the most. The wallet. ¡°O-oh.¡± Scratching his head in embarrassment, he looked intermittently between them. ¡°T-thank you so much! Ah! I need to be helping!¡± Bowing before leaving as fast as he came, Couger went to ready the nets, leaving the two scheming women behind. ¡°I helped before with the fuath, so I¡¯m gonna go act as cargo!¡± Velvet ignored the glare directed at her. ¡°Make sure the favors you¡¯re owed get me a nice accommodation! Velvet¡¯s Murder Services are worth that much!¡± ¡°I¡¯d make you sleep with the fuaths if I could.¡± She whispered in a groan, not wanting Velvet to hear that and turn back. ¡­ The rest of the trip had no more problems. They arrived at Coris before midday, making a stop to sell a few things and buy some coal. As a rather cheap steam boat, the Algae wasn¡¯t made for long voyages into the ocean, usually just going from Casrey to Caris to Dodon and back. Velvet always liked Caris. Different from the mountainous Casrey, it was a flat little island full of exotic and delicate flowers. Most of the people here worked as florists, beekeepers or pastissers, selling or exchanging their work to sailors like Viroa and others to be taken and reselled on the capital. That meant she wasn¡¯t gonna stay idle on the ship. She had made a few charms on the way here, planning to sell them before arriving at Dodon, since the capital had too much competition. Also, she wanted to eat a real Carissian breakfast. She jumped down the ship, carrying her suitcase. She didn¡¯t bother to hold onto her hat, since it had a charm to resist being stolen by the wind or gravity. Caris harbor smelled better than Casrey¡¯s, the sweets smells of flowers and cakes mixing with the smoke from the ships. Velvet went to the shop with chairs and tables to eat, ordering some traditional foods. After a while, a tray with one small cake filled with roasted goat cheese and dripping with honey, a glass with cold strawberry tea and an apple cut in slices resembling a flower with a bit of cinnamon on top (living closely to sailors made Velvet know the importance of eating fruits and vegetables on the regular), all of it decorated with some differents types of edible flowers, carried by a woman in a simple white dress was put in front of her. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. Helping herself to the delicious and deserved food, Velvet licked her fingers clean from the honey, before opening her suitcase. Bird repellent, worm repellent, goat repellent, humidity repellent, humidity attract¡­ She checked her charm stash, before going to talk to some gardeners. ¡­ ¡°Five goat repellents, that¡¯ll be two auris and fifteen chalkins.¡± She had decided to raise her prices from six to fifteen chalkins, no longer needing to stay hidden from Madam Dorna. Still, she wasn¡¯t gonna raise the price to a whole auri yet, since she preferred selling them fast and gaining experience from doing a lot of them. Giving the charms to the gardener, she kept feeling an annoying sensation on the back of her neck. ¡°She keeps following me¡­¡± She communicated to Hyde, acting as if nothing was wrong. ¡°You really have a skill to attract old ladies.¡± Velvet grimaced. ¡°Don¡¯t say it like that, I feel like being cursed by grannies.¡± ¡°Maybe you are.¡± ¡°You¡¯re making me cry Hyde, look at me, I¡¯m in tears.¡± Velvet gave up, turning around a corner, using the Fast stroll spell to circle around the houses and going straight to the old woman''s back, without giving her time to prepare. Making her bestest, nicest smile, she saluted from behind the old lady. ¡°Hello! Can I help you?¡± The woman jumped in fright, tumbling a bit and pressing a hand upon her heart. ¡°For Arhontissa¡¯s sake! You almost gave me a heart attack!¡± Arhontissa, huh? So she¡¯s not a Mirel believer¡­ Velvet mused, a bit disappointed. Charlampa Archipelago had no official religion since the start of the third Maquia, but sometimes immigrants carried their own beliefs from the other four habitable continents. She didn¡¯t care about the gods, but most magicians warned her about Mirel followers, since, when the Inquisition had no power over a place, they tended to take matters into their own hands. Her smile unwavering, Velvet continued. ¡°Hm? Did I? Maybe you just were too distracted with something else~ I am currently selling homemade charms, is madam interest-¡± ¡°Shhh!¡± The lady shut her up, looking around alarmed. Then, when she verified no one was close to them, she turned to Velvet. ¡°Yes,¡± She talked very low, making Velvet put effort on hearing her. ¡°I want a charm.¡± Velvet made an ¡®okay¡¯ gesture, opening her suitcase and showing her the remaining charms. The lady refused with her head, pushing aside the suitcase. ¡°I need something to help my husband¡­¡± ¡°What illness does he have?¡± Velvet ignored Hyde¡¯s scoff in her head. ¡°No, he isn¡¯t ill. I need something to¡­ ¡®power¡¯ him up.¡± Trying not to laugh at the poor woman, Velvet kept pressuring. ¡°Power him up? I have some strengthening talismans¡­¡± ¡°Stop acting innocent and bullying the poor woman.¡± Hyde scolded her. ¡°I wanna see how far she can go.¡± It was not like Velvet had experience, not being interested on Casrey¡¯s options, but she had read some of the books Madam Dorna kept hidden. ¡°I want him to¡­¡± she put her hands closed together, with both index fingers pointing down, then, she made them point up, raising her eyes at Velvet, who was trying not to laugh. ¡°Oooohhh¡­ now I understand,¡± She lied, pulling a blank paper. ¡°I dont have one, but I can make it. Give me a few minutes.¡± After imbuing it with magic, she wrote some symbols and words with the homemade ink she had made, mixing some herbs and seeds that helped with channeling and containing magic, then she folded it in a five pointed star and gave it to the lady. ¡°Special charm, five uses, put it under his pillow before the act. The star spikes will break one by one after each use.¡± She started picking up the materials, opening her mouth to tell the price of fifteen chalkings, but the lady, apparently in a hurry after waiting for the charm to be made, dropped three auris on her suitcase, before running away. Velvet picked the money with stars on her eyes. ¡°See? Acting innocent and not rushing things is a profitable business.¡± She heard Hyde¡¯s sigh on her head. Chapter 10. Magician Satisfied with the number of charms sold, Velvet went back to the ship. She knew how much time she had remaining, and didn¡¯t dare to cross Viroa more and let her leave with the ship for being late. The sailors had finished loading the new merchandise, so Velvet went and loaded herself too. She saw Couger climbing up the stairs to the cargo hold, and Viroa smoking pipe. She was almost at Dodon. ¡­ It was almost night when they arrived. The Algae would stay the night at Dodon¡¯s harbor, and go back tomorrow morning. After all, navigating at night was impossible for this ship. Velvet went to find Viroa, who was walking towards an inn. Going next to her, both of them stayed silent. ¡°I¡¯m not paying for your stay.¡± Viroa started. ¡°Wasn¡¯t gonna ask you to,¡± Velvet continued. ¡°I just want something to give to your ¡®owner of favors¡¯ so that they know it is not a scam.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you in a hurry? I can give you something tomorrow.¡± ¡°Mmm, impossible. I¡¯m gonna take the midnight train in a few hours.¡± Velvet¡¯s initial plan didn¡¯t need her to move from Dodon¡¯s harbor, but now that she needed to take the airship, she had to go out from Petren, Dodon¡¯s capital and where the harbor was, to Wishbell, right across the island, where the hangar was. That made her think about taking a train, and, since she could get on the midnight one, that¡¯s what she was gonna do. The trip took two days and two nights, with a cost of two auris for the basic accommodations. Viroa sighed, and Velvet could almost believe there was a bit of sadness in there. ¡°You¡¯re rushing too much¡­ Didn¡¯t no one teach you that the faster you run, the bigger the crash?¡± Velvet smiled at her, not doubting her words. ¡°And yet, I will keep on running.¡± ¡°Youngsters should listen more to the elderly¡­¡± She complained, pulling a beautiful pocket watch from her coat, giving it to Velvet. ¡°That¡¯s all the proof you need.¡± ¡°Ooohhh¡­ it''s gorgeous!¡± She lifted the watch to observe it better. It was old, and a bit damaged, but she still found it precious. ¡°Do I need to give it to¡­ you didn¡¯t tell me any name. Still, do I need to give it to them? Or just show it and keep it for myself?¡± Putting the watch in her pant¡¯s pocket, she kept on bothering Viroa. ¡°No and no, you¡¯ll only keep it and return it to me once you can.¡± Delighted by Velvet¡¯s disappointed gaze, she continued. ¡°And the man you need to ask for is Saliman Ramis, the Blue Python¡¯s owner.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t I keep it as a birthday present? I¡¯ll be eighteen in less than two weeeeks¡­¡± ¡°Maybe you¡¯ll start acting as an adult then. No. Now get lost, shoo.¡± Pushing her away, both of them flinched when Couger entered the inn running. ¡°You¡¯re leaving already?¡± Almost shouting, he got shushed by both women. ¡°Sorry, sorry¡­¡± He was listening from outside the door, right? Velvet mused. Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Yes, I don¡¯t need to stay, and Viroa won¡¯t pay for my room¡­¡± Before Couger could puppy eye the old woman, Velvet stopped him. ¡°And I want to be prepared for another Lyngbakr situation.¡± ¡°... That makes sense¡­¡± Disappointed but not surprised, he remained still for a moment. ¡°Ah, can you wait here for a moment? I want to go get something.¡± Not waiting for Velvet¡¯s answer, he went running towards the Algae. Both women watched in silence from the door. Couger tripped and almost fell several times, since he was hurrying too much. He went and came back in two minutes, carrying a box. Velvet clapped. ¡°You¡¯re sooo fast, like a cougar.¡± Taking deep breaths, Couger laughed at her praise. ¡°Aren¡¯t you in a hurry? Here.¡± Pushing the box on Velvet¡¯s arms, his eyes shined in anticipation. ¡°Since it¡¯s your birthday soon, I got you this.¡± ¡°Awww¡­¡± She opened the box, inside, there was a gorgeous low top hat. Black in color with a decorative orange ribbon, it would compliment nicely with the clothes Madam Dorna gave her. ¡°Thank you so much! It¡¯s great, really great! I¡¯m going to protect and care for it with my life!¡± Cradling the hat on her hands as if it was the most precious treasure ever, happy tears accumulated in her eyes. ¡°Oooohh¡­ Aren¡¯t you a beautiful thing? Beautiful things need a name, don¡¯t they? How about Wendy? No, no¡­ Oh! Belladona! Elegant, beautiful and deadly! Yes, I hereby name you Belladona!¡± Viroa coughed, trying to get Velvet''s attention. It did not work. ¡°Velvet and Belladona, yes, yes. The Vel and the Bel, I like it!¡± The coughing sounds got louder. Giving Viroa an annoyed side eye, Velvet stopped fawning. ¡°What?¡± ¡°The midnight train won¡¯t wait for you.¡± ¡°I know I know, I¡¯m leaving already!¡± She patted Couger on the shoulder. ¡°Be a good boy and become a good man.¡± Putting her new hat on her suitcase, she waved at them. ¡°See you someday!¡± Running into the streets, Velvet left them, while Couger waved back at her and Viroa smoked in silence. When she disappeared from view, Viroa sighed. ¡°Kid, try to change those tastes. Women like her are just problems in the making.¡± Jumping in surprise, Couger tried to defend his questionable tastes. ¡°W-what?! Velvet is a good person! What even makes you think that?¡± The old lady laughed. ¡°Hah! No, you are mistaken, kid. You are a good person. Velvet is just like me.¡± Taking a puff from her pipe, she added. ¡°And we never played nice.¡± ¡­ Walking fast down the streets, Velvet was ignorant of the conversation she was missing on. The pocket watch Viroa gave her was broken, so the only way to tell the time was the clocktower at the harbor. Last time Velvet looked at it, it was eight pm. The train left the station at ten pm. I¡¯m good, then. In ten minutes I¡¯ll arrive. Slowing her steps, she kept on going. ¡°Hey! You there!¡± Someone screamed at her, making her stop. ¡°Need something? I¡¯m in a hurry, as you can see.¡± A man, around his forties, closed in on her from the side street. ¡°Is that so? Then be a good girl, and this can be over sooner than you think.¡± Any normal person would notice that something was wrong when, threatening someone with physical abuse was met with the possible victim turning to look at them and smiling. ¡°Oh! I was waiting for this to happen!¡± Velvet went towards the man, playing with something inside her pocket. ¡°Waiting for this? Are you some kinda pervert?¡± Confident in his abilities, the man didn¡¯t run away. ¡°No, I am a magician.¡± ¡­ Putting back her gloves, Velvet hummed while putting things back in her suitcase. ¡°I really didn¡¯t know that was possible. The human body is full of curiosities!¡± Speaking to Hyde and herself, she finished packing her things. ¡°Oh, that took me half an hour, better leave now! And you¡­¡± Trembling with a dead look in his eyes, the man refused to meet her gaze, curling in a fetal position. ¡°Cmon, you¡¯ll be fine! Oh, just don''t try this with someone else! Or the curse I put on your friend will activate. Hm? You want to know what it does? It¡¯s a surprise!¡± Waving at him, she left towards the station. Chapter 11. Finger For a midnight train, there were quite some people waiting. Velvet counted twelve, herself included. Most of them were either people trying to find luck in another place, running away or getting a work transfer. All of them were adults, except one kid clinging to a young man''s sleeve. The kid stared at Velvet when she approached the platform. Velvet stared back at him, puffing her cheeks and making a funny face. He laughed, puffing his own in response and making another face. The young man looked down and scolded him. ¡°Niko! Stop bothering the young miss.¡± ¡°Wha-? She started it!¡± The man was going to scold him again, but Velvet interrupted him. ¡°He¡¯s right, we were just playing.¡± The man cleared his throat before bowing slightly. ¡°I¡¯ll apologize then. My name is Nathaniel Bliss. If the young miss doesn¡¯t mind introducing herself¡­¡± ¡°Velvet Consestella Dobastro.¡± Getting a better look at the ma- Nathaniel, Velvet could describe him better. Around twenty years old, with black hair that he seemed to take great care of keeping combed back, seeing the amount of bandoline he was using, dressed in a neither expensive nor cheap suit, he, like Velvet and most adults there, carried a suitcase. Both of them have black hair and black eyes¡­ Are they brothers? Velvet guessed. ¡°Going on a family trip?¡± She asked, out of curiosity. ¡°More or less. We are going to Wishbell to take the airship to Lumago. A family member is waiting for us there.¡± Lumago¡­ That¡¯s in Mirel. ¡°Oh, Lumago. A beautiful city, I always recommend taking some time to stroll through its gardens.¡± A man¡¯s voice approached them. ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯ve been told,¡± Nathaniel said. ¡°Is the sir also moving there?¡± The man laughed. ¡°Don¡¯t bother with formalities, kid. But no, I¡¯m just going to Wishbell for work.¡± ¡°What kind of work?¡± Velvet, who was showing Niko a few non magical paper figurines, asked, looking at him. He was around his forties, a middle aged man with brown hair and a receding hairline he dissimulated by wearing a top hat. His face had a neatly trimmed beard and mustache, and he was wearing a neat gray suit. ¡°Detective work, miss.¡± ¡°Really?! That¡¯s so cool! I always wanted to be a detective!¡± Now it was Niko¡¯s turn to interrupt. ¡°Niko don¡¯t shout, you¡¯re bothering the people.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s fine, really¡± Both Velvet and Mr Detective said at the same time. ¡°I have a nephew his age.¡± ¡°I have a few brothers his age.¡± Nathaniel cleared his throat in shame, while Niko looked smug. ¡°Who are you trying to catch? Are you going undercover? What¡¯s your alias?¡± Now encouraged, the kid kept on shooting questions. All while Nathaniel clenched his teeth in helplessness. The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°... No to all of those, actually. But you can call me Iren Doyle.¡± Pressing his hat against his chest, he bowed in an elegant and practiced manner, ¡°I¡¯m in the middle of searching for someone.¡± That caught the attention of the three, and also turned several heads of other persons that were listening to their conversation slightly. So that¡¯s why you butted in our conversation¡­ Not really shaming him, Velvet bited the bullet. ¡°Who?¡± ¡°Sonia Springfell.¡± He showed her a photo of a young girl. Light brown hair, with rosy cheeks and an innocent appearance. Velvet also noticed that he held the photo a bit away from them, letting any interested person catch a glance, which they did. ¡°Fifteen years old, disappeared from her home two weeks ago. Her parents believe she is alive. If you see her, have seen her, or have information about her whereabouts, please let me or the police know. There¡¯s a recompense.¡± Both of them shook their heads, not knowing anything. Not that it mattered, since Iren obviously wasn¡¯t really asking them. An uncomfortable silence sweeped in. No one had anything to add to the disappearance, and no one wanted to be the one to change the conversation theme. Luckily for them, the sound of the train arriving broke the silence. Velvet, followed by Niko and company went inside. There, the ticket collector checked their reservations, sending them towards their rooms. The room Velvet was sleeping in was small. Very small. It was a single bedroom, with only space for a bed and a cheap mirror. A door separated her from the bathroom, also cramped, with a toilet and a sink. After relieving her necessities, Velvet cleaned herself a bit with a towel, some cheap soap and the little water the sink could afford. ¡°You really get what you pay for, huh.¡± She complained in a low voice, sitting with her legs crossed on top of the bed. She started getting ready for a spell. Her original paper figurines had sunk with the fuath. She had recovered three when they pulled the monster out, but they were damaged, so she had to replace them all. They were easy to replace, but since she could only control ten, there was no reason to do more. No, they could not be stored and replaced instantly if one broke. She had to do a ritual to enchant normal paper figurines to her Esca, and in the middle of a problem that was difficult to do. Opening her suitcase, she pulled out a sheet of paper and placed it in front of her. Then she placed her bare hand on top of it, not touching the sheet. Deep breaths, deep breaths¡­ The eye in her hand shined slightly. A tear formed on the ¡®corner¡¯ of it, sliding down her middle finger slowly. The tear was blue with golden dots like stars on it, similar to Hyde¡¯s legs. After all, that was the color of ¡®Knowledge¡¯. Falling on the sheet on paper, it covered the surface for a moment before disappearing, leaving no trace behind. Soon, a paper arm raised from the middle of the sheet, followed by a paper head, another paper arm, a paper body and two paper legs. Not long after, another figurine popped out, and another, until ten of them were out. The paper sheet remained the same, but then it started cracking and becoming dust, as if a lot of time had passed at that moment. Velvet shook off the bed, cleaning it from dust. Almost an hour had passed since she boarded the train, so it was time to rest¡­ Not before doing something else, though. The paper figurines worked as an extension of her body. They were like fingers with fingers, and could do tasks. Like compilation of information. Velvet had some semblance of respect towards the people of Casrey, especially since they could always snitch on Madam Dorna, so she never went to try and discover what they did in private. But that didn¡¯t include strangers on a train. Twelve passengers, a conductor, a ticket collector, and maybe some helpers. She only had ten figurines, taking her out of the equation, it wasn¡¯t near enough to monitor the whole train. So she wouldn''t do that. The detective was a person of interest, so one figurine for him. The conductor and the ticket collector were normal workers, same as the rest of the crew, so they got no figurines. Niko and Nathaniel shared a bedroom, so that lessened one. One paper figurine for each passenger bedroom that wasn¡¯t hers. Giving the order, the paper figurines walked in different directions, their shapes melding seamlessly in the air, before blurring and disappearing, as if they walked inside water, just like Velvet did when carrying Couger. After that, she went to sleep. Chapter 12. Peek Again, once sleeping, the same dream awaited her. ¡°It¡¯s not like I could see if something changed. It is too dark.¡± She looked towards the chained man, the only thing barely visible ¡°And you look as miserable as always.¡± ¡°You should try some Corissian breakfast, it¡¯s glorious. Roasted goat cheese, honey¡­¡± The dream went like always, with her talking to the void. ¡­ Soft crunching sounds woke her up. Without moving or making a noise, she opened her eyes a bit, waiting for them to adapt to the little light that entered from the window. Blinking slowly, the first thing she saw was thin golden threads around the room hanging from the ceiling to the walls, the window, and the bedhead. Something dangled from them. After focusing a bit, she realized they were small cocoons. Dozens of them, hanging over her head. The thing in the room kept on munching, so Velvet, sneakily, as if being sleeping, turned her body slightly. It stopped eating for a second, before continuing. Do I really move that much while sleeping? He barely reacted¡­ Opening her eyes a bit again, Velvet focused on the corner of the room, where the golden threads converged. There, the gluttonous thing was munching on one of the cocoons with a voracious attitude. Usually, when spiders ate, they regurgitated stomach fluids over and into its prey, combining that with masticating with their fangs and teeth, reducing the prey''s body and tissues to a soup. Of course, that varied by the species, but something she was sure of is that spiders didn¡¯t eat like humans. Demonic spiders, on the other hand¡­ It was still very dark, so she wasn¡¯t exactly sure, but it seemed that Hyde was eating the bugs just by munching on them. And he ate quite fast. Once he finished one cocoon, he put it aside on an increasing mountain of empty cocoons, then, he dragged one thread towards him and grabbed another, doing the same. Now Velvet realized why taking a demon to the real world was so limitating on size. Hyde alone probably ate all the train bugs. And he was palm sized. Having five of them in a place could probably ruin an ecosystem in days. Still, that depended on how much he stayed without eating. But he is a bit bigger than when I summoned him¡­ Not twice as big, just a little bit more, and maybe it was a trick of the shadows, but Velvet had a perfect memory, so she was sure Hyde had grown. Well, it is good for me if he¡¯s stronger. With that, she went back to sleep. ¡­ This time, when she woke up, it was finally morning, and Hyde had cleaned every single trace of his midnight snack, going back to hiding in her hat. If she could dream of something else than that void, she may have thought it was just a dream. But since she couldn¡¯t, obviously it was reality. Still, she hoped he had saved something for later, and not just eaten every single cocoon she saw. The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. Because there were a lot of cocoons. Velvet stretched, before sitting up and going to the bathroom. Face cleaned and other things done, she went back to sitting on the bed and called the paper figurines back. One by one, they walked over, materializing slowly from the air and forming a semicircle around Velvet. She counted nine, and waited, but the tenth never showed up. Velvet sended a signal to it again, but got no response. ¡°It¡¯s not broken, but it won¡¯t respond.¡± ¡°Cut off the link with it, now.¡± Hyde ordered her, coming out a bit from the hat. ¡°Eh?¡± She was going to do so, but then realized her hand was starting to sprout some rashes, starting from the tip of her finger and climbing. Containing her desires to scream, she cut the link as fast as possible with the paper figurine, stopping the propagation of the painful rash. ¡°Shit!¡± Not touching or scratching it, she opened her suitcase with her free hand, pulled the shirt she wore yesterday and went to the bathroom. There, she opened the sink¡¯s faucet, put her hand under it and started scrubbing it with the shirt. Soon, blood, pus and pieces of skin dripped with the water down the faucet. Velvet gritted her teeth, cursing in silence though the skin tearing pain. ¡°Shit¡­ There¡¯s another magician here! And a really fucked up one! They really waited until I called the figurines back! Ahh¡­!¡± Making sure she took off every single piece of skin the other magician had infected, she left her hand in raw flesh. She cut the connection before the rash completely covered her Esca, which obviously was the magician¡¯s idea. Damaging the Esca didn¡¯t affect the ability to do magic, it affected the purification of miasma instead. It was just a way to mess with someone in the most annoying way. Luckily for Velvet, she had more than three weeks to heal, so it shouldn¡¯t be a problem. She left her hand under the running water for a while to dull the pain, complaining all the time. ¡°I think this is enough¡­¡± sighing, she left the bathroom ¡°I don''t have any charm to heal this, so I¡¯ll go and ask the service for medicine.¡± Magic that could heal physical wounds was scarce. No, the correct term was flesh magic, and finding a magician specialized on it was very difficult. After all, it was one of the most corrupting paradigms. Yes, she did sew some healing sigils to the kid¡¯s clothes back at home. But in reality? Those were glorified painkillers. If they were to get really hurt, a trip to the doctor was in order. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t. Not before looking at what they have written.¡± Referring to the paper figurines, Velvet hadn¡¯t checked them, so, curious as to what Hyde meant, and sitting on her bed again, careful to not touch anything with the damaged hand, she stared at the figurines. Since they couldn¡¯t speak, they shared what they had seen by writing on their bodies. The text was in first person, but it was obvious they didn¡¯t do those things, just saw them. Velvet stopped reading, staring at the paper figurine in silence. She knew which figurine went into each room. The other magician was five rooms to her left, and the murder occurred two rooms to her right. Now, she didn¡¯t know who occupied the magician¡¯s room, since the person went in before her, but that couldn¡¯t be said about the ones to her right. A scream came from that direction. Velvet took a deep breath and closed her eyes. ¡°There''s been a murder! So-someone is dead!¡± The sound of people leaving their beds in a rush and asking questions came next. Some people didn¡¯t bother to dress themselves, just wrapping their bodies on the covers. Some just opened their door a bit, to pay attention to whatever was happening. Velvet had no need to do either. She knew who was dead. Still, she left her bed and carefully wrapped herself on the blanket to also peek through the door. After all, she didn¡¯t want to seem suspicious. ¡°T-there¡¯s been a murder!¡± The voice, probably a member of the cleaning service, shouted again. A man that didn¡¯t bother to finish dressing himself, of rough appearance, went there and looked inside the room. ¡°Fuck! It¡¯s that detective! The one searching for the girl!¡± Gasps of surprise sounded, the people that were peeking went to finish dressing, just before the supervisor appeared. Chapter 13. Order Velvet also went back inside to change. She was a lady, so she could take some time. Just not too much. The shirt she wore yesterday was dirty and wet, and some blood still remained. ¡°Do you think the other mage knows it was me?¡± Could they trace the curse they used back to her? ¡°No. To do that they would have to follow the paper figurine back, put a tracking spell on it or know beforehand it was you.¡± ¡°Or search for someone with a damaged hand.¡± Velvet rummaged through her suitcase, pulling a clean, long sleeved white shirt, ¡°or for someone that visited the nurse.¡± ¡°There¡¯s also the murder,¡± she added, dressing up with one hand, ¡°I mean, obviously no one will see this,¡± she waved her hand, ¡°and think it is related to that, but still.¡± Done that, she pulled out a sheet of paper and made a ¡®healing¡¯/painkiller charm that she wrapped around her palm. Pulling out another, she wrapped her hand again, and applied some magic, making the paper deform and cover her damaged hand and Esca. Soon, the paper changed color to be the same as Velvet skin, making it look as if she was perfectly fine. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± She decided to change hats, this time a brown boater hat with a green ribbon. ¡°There¡¯s been a murder, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s the time.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you know Hyde? Girls like to change hats when they have inner and outer problems. It helps them mentally, you demon. Now,¡± she picked with care her previous hat, Hyde inside, and put it closer to the new one, ¡°Get moving.¡± A shadow behind the ribbon extended its tendrils, caressing the less darker shadow on the other hat. Then, slowly, as if it were the roots of a plant, extending, and burrowing itself on the shadow, the darkness moved. Pocket dimensions was something all demons had. She didn¡¯t know how big Hyde¡¯s was, but, since he was small, even a place like the bedroom they were now would be considered big. Once he finished moving, Velvet stored the old hat and put on the new one, before leaving the bedroom. Outside, people were talking one over another, some tried to maintain order, but, with a murder just committed, and the train not stopping, the ambience was uncomfortable. Velvet wanted to see the corpse, since the door was still open, but ten persons plus the staff and the supervisor made the corridor tight. And she couldn¡¯t even use magic, not wanting to reveal herself to the other mage. But she did see Nathaniel and Niko, who were close. Niko, whose paper figurine said , looked scared, tired, and a bit excited, not really understanding the situation, while Nathaniel was sitting against the wall with a look of panic. ¡°Do you know what happened?¡± Velvet asked them. ¡°They won¡¯t let me look!¡± Niko, angry at the adult¡¯s efforts to save him from a potential trauma, needed someone to talk to. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°They won¡¯t let me look either, it¡¯s too cramped.¡± ¡°Oh! Well I know a few things they said,¡± happy at being the knowing party, the kid started spilling the tea, ¡°they say he was stabbed in the chest,¡± he poked his own chest as a demonstration, ¡°Nath saw it.¡± At being named, Nathaniel trembled, dragging his hands from his eyes to the back of his head, pushing the stray hairs back in place. ¡°Why? Why are they not stopping the train?¡± He wasn¡¯t asking anyone in particular, his voice low. ¡°Didn¡¯t they say anything? Maybe they are waiting for us to arrive to a big city¡± Nathaniel lifted his head to look at her. ¡°We passed Davio¡¯s detour five minutes ago. It¡¯s not stopping.¡± ¡°Did the supervisor say why?¡± ¡°Something about arriving at Wishbell on time. For Mirel, why?¡± Velvet was gonna keep talking, but a loud whistle stopped all the chatter in the train. It had come from the supervisor. ¡°Please, return to your cabins until further notice. The service will bring breakfast to your rooms soon.¡± ¡°Do not, and I repeat, do not leave your rooms until I say otherwise.¡± Some noises of disagreement ran through the people. Some did share Nathaniel¡¯s feelings, wondering why they didn¡¯t take the detour to Davio. Making their opinions known, the supervisor tried to calm them down, to no avail. Then, the man next to him cleared his throat, making everyone shut up. That¡¯s strange, he didn¡¯t make that much noise to be so imposing. Of course, that was as long as one was a normal human. If one was a mage¡­ ¡°Go back to your rooms. This is an order.¡± Velvet felt the need to obey, just like everyone else, as if they were agreeing with him. ¡°Wait!¡± Nataniel got up, breaking the submissive atmosphere, ¡°Are you expecting us to stay two full days like this?!¡± Velvet looked at him, he was sweating and pale as a ghost ¡°And what about the body?! I-is he going to stay there for those two days?! We can stop at River Hill!¡± Niko hid behind Velvet, seemingly a bit ashamed of his usually composed brother, even when he was in the right. ¡°That won¡¯t be possible,¡± the man said, not losing his calmness. ¡°The Textile Assembly will be held in Idir in a week. If my time would be lost in this¡­ murder mystery, I might arrive late.¡± ¡°Who cares about some assembly?! Someone got killed!¡± The people inside agreed. ¡°A sad tragedy. But, the hundred families in Dodon whose work depends on the deals made there, care about it. Will you explain it to them?¡± He turned to the rest of the people, ¡°will you do it? Tell them they had to be laid off because of a murder? That could be resolved both in River Hill and in Wishbell? Which one of you wants to give the news?¡± As fast as the people riled up again, they calmed down. Even Nathaniel took a step back. Looking better at the man, apart from his noticeable long curled golden hair and red eyes, Velvet noticed how expensive his clothes were. Or the golden rings he wore. It was no wonder the supervisor looked so submissive towards him. And that was without counting the probable chance of him being a magician. ¡°Any other things to add?¡± He waited for a few seconds. No one spoke. ¡°Then go back to your cabins and wait.¡± The last word was an order that everyone followed this time. Velvet looked lost for a moment, waiting for the people to dissipate, then, she quickly took a glance at the room of the murder, before being glared at by the rich man, and scattering between excuses back to her room. She didn¡¯t need any extensive observation of the body, since she was of the Knowledge paradigm. That little instant was more than enough to remember the whole room. Except the bathroom, because it was closed. And by looking at the corpse, it was normal Nathaniel had gotten so scared of being close to the murderer. Saying that he was stabbed was selling it short. Whoever did it made sure the evidence ended up around the whole room, just by stabbing over and over the detective¡¯s body. Chapter 14. Unordinary Back into her room, Velvet waited for breakfast to be served before doing anything. ¡°That guy just used some mind control, right? Derivative from the lust paradigm?¡± She asked Hyde to pass the time. ¡°Not really. Lust deals with the subconscious desires, twisting or transforming them. That was a direct type of control. You have a basic knowledge already, try to uncover the truth.¡± ¡°Alright. The way he did it was by giving an order. Orders are a symbol of power. Power is control. It didn¡¯t work on Nathaniel, but it worked on me and the rest.¡± ¡°Go on.¡± ¡°I did want to keep going to Wishbell, but Nathaniel didn¡¯t. That means the effect is stronger the more you want to follow the order, or agree with it. The effect doesn¡¯t increase by threatening someone, offering them something or making them not care.¡± ¡°That takes some paradigms out. I¡¯m between pride or envy. Mostly envy, since he needs people to subconsciously agree with what he says. Or the middle ground between those two.¡± ¡°Still, I do think he is not that strong. I mean, Nathaniel is a human, and he escaped the order. Of course, if he is the one that got my paper figurine, maybe he is keeping his true strength hidden, and showing that he can order people around was a warning.¡± ¡°As in ¡®Heeeey, see how I ordered someone to kill this suspicious guy? I can do it to you once I find you.¡¯ What if he targeted the detective because he thought it was him using the paper figurines?¡± She thought for a moment, telling Hyde her worries ¡°No, whoever attacked me did it after the detective was murdered.¡± Someone knocked on her door. Her breakfast, probably. Well, the person carrying her breakfast, since breakfasts didn¡¯t have hands. Unless you liked your meat alive and running. Velvet went to the door, not before putting her nine paper figurines close to it. ¡°Yes?¡± She called, not opening the door yet. ¡°Breakfast is ready, miss,¡± a young and tired feminine voice answered. ¡°How do I know you¡¯re not the murderer?¡± ¡°Um¡­ I am not? I bring eggs, bread and bacon, but I can take them away if you don¡¯t want them¡­¡± Opening the door after being threatened with no food, Velvet grabbed the tray ¡°No veggies or fruit?¡± ¡°I can get you an apple¡­ The previous room didn¡¯t want it.¡± The young girl looked around the cart, giving a green apple to Velvet, who gave her thanks and a bit of tip, before going back inside. Sitting on her bed to start eating, a white envelope fell from the tray to the floor. Velvet stared at it in silence. ¡°Pick it up Hyde, it is for you.¡± ¡°No it''s not. Pick it up yourself.¡± ¡°I have to do everything in this household.¡± Bending down to pick it up, she didn¡¯t notice any stamp on it, even when the paper quality was kinda high. Opening and pulling out a letter, two lines written in exquisite calligraphy greeted her. ¡°Us?¡± Velvet started eating, setting the letter aside. It¡¯s not like she could not go. Running away from the train would make her a prime suspect for the murder, putting her in a wanted list and ruining her chances to board an airship. The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. So at least she would go with her stomach full. ¡­ Waiting for the corridor to be empty of personnel, Velvet went to the detective¡¯s room, which was open. Two people were inside. Luckily for them, Iren Doyle did pay for a room bigger than Velvet¡¯s, so they weren¡¯t cramped. ¡°Ugh¡­¡± Covering her nose, Velvet grimaced at the smell. Effectively, one of the persons was the rich man from before, the other was a woman wearing a secretary gray checkered uniform, with black hair collected in a bun and purple eyes. ¡°I told you she would come,¡± the woman said, smiling at her. I had no other choice, don''t be smug. ¡°Well, the letter you sent me was so eloquent, I just couldn¡¯t find it in me to ignore it.¡± Clearing his throat, he seemed to like doing that a lot, the man called their attention ¡°The paper mage, I presume.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Velvet played dumb. ¡°The owner of this thing,¡± he pulled her lost paper figurine out. Still, Velvet didn¡¯t seem to recognize it. Laughing nervously, she took a step back. ¡°Sorry, I reeeally don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about.¡± ¡°I followed the paper figurine you sent to my room.¡± The woman in checkered clothes said, making Velvet¡¯s fake nervous smile become real. ¡°I am really, really sorry.¡± She lied. She wasn¡¯t sorry for what she did, she was sorry for getting caught by two mages. The woman laughed politely ¡°It¡¯s normal for baby magicians to desire trying everything they learn. I do encourage it.¡± The corner of Velvet¡¯s lips twitched, but she managed to keep her smile ¡°So everything is alright and forgotten, right? I can go get the hand you made me skin alive treated without being suspected of murder?¡± ¡°There¡¯s no need for that.¡± The man said, while the woman pulled out a small container and gave it to Velvet ¡°As a proof of our goodwill.¡± Goodwill, sure. Accepting it, she returned their ¡®goodwill¡¯ ¡°Velvet¡¯s my name, now, if you are so kind as to introduce yourselves.¡± ¡°Cornelius Graham, Viscount of Garunt, owner of Graham Textiles.¡± Dammit, Velvet did like that company¡¯s hats. ¡°Siberina Ropertti, Sir Graham¡¯s secretary and lawyer.¡± ¡°And part time magician, might I add?¡± Velvet said. ¡°Indeed.¡± Before an uncomfortable silence could take root, Cornelius started talking again, walking around the room without stepping on the blood ¡°Now, Velvet, what do you think of the murder?¡± He stopped in front of the corpse, as if expecting her to come closer. ¡°If you are asking what my paper figurines ¡®saw¡¯, they saw nothing.¡± ¡°I am asking from mage to mage. My paradigm is not focused on knowledge.¡± So they know even that¡­ Velvet got closer, crouching down in front of Iren¡¯s corpse ¡°It was brutal, that¡¯s for sure, but¡­¡± She pointed to the ribs ¡°You need to use something very hard and be very strong to cut the bones like this,¡± getting up, she looked at him ¡°Do you think there¡¯s another mage in the train?¡± Velvet didn¡¯t think they were the murderers. As in, the ones doing the stabbing. Maybe Cornelius ordered someone to do it, but, if his powers needed some level of agreement, the murderer should have hated detective Iren Doyle way too much. Of course, that didn¡¯t clear Siberina from doubt. Cornelius didn¡¯t say anything, just nodded at Siberina¡¯s direction. The secretary knelt next to Velvet, and, with gloved hands, took off the dead detective¡¯s gloves. There, an eye looked at the distance. Iren Doyle was a mage too? His Esca is just a bit more open than mine. ¡°There¡¯s five mages on this train? Isn¡¯t this too many?¡± Aren¡¯t magicians supposed to be rare? Are we cabbages now? ¡°That seems to be the case.¡± The secretary answered her, watching with a polite smile how Velvet left her and went to check Iren Doyle¡¯s personal belongings ¡°Being a mage means dealing with the unordinary. It¡¯s no wonder the unordinary occurs to us.¡± ¡°Expect the unexpected.¡± Iren¡¯s suitcase had some clothes, a notebook, a revolver, three bullets¡­ ¡°He had a gun. If he didn¡¯t even try to grab it, that means he knew or trusted the other person.¡± Velvet started reading the notebook, almost finishing it in a minute. Not because Velvet read fast, which she did, but because it was almost empty, just some reminders ¡°Or that person did say that they knew something about Sonia¡¯s Springfell whereabouts.¡± Iren Doyle also was of the knowledge paradigm. Velvet was sure of that after seeing his notebook. Still, she put it back as if it was nothing. Getting killed so easily¡­ Is our paradigm so bad at combat? Chapter 15. Deal Velvet went to the bathroom. Since it was closed before she couldn¡¯t see the insides. Some remains of blood dyed the sink, and she could smell some puke on the toilet. ¡°Seems they realized what they had done.¡± Going out and closing the bathroom, she stood in front of the bedroom door. ¡°Do you know the Time Tracer spell?¡± Siberina asked her, in a tone that implied she already knew the answer. ¡°Is from your paradigm. Great for solving murders.¡± ¡°I do not.¡± Velvet said in a low voice between her teeth. ¡°I don¡¯t hear you~¡± Velvet made a sad face. ¡°Does bullying a poor baby magician bring you joy? Is that what older mag- Don¡¯t pull my cheeks!¡± She slapped the woman¡¯s hands away from her face. ¡°But they look so soft¡­¡± Velvet wanted to be angry, but, to tell the truth, she didn¡¯t even notice Siberina¡¯s hands until she touched her. She was so fast¡­ Something tightened on Velvet¡¯s chest. It was fear. ¡°Just tell me the spell already!¡± ¡­ ¡°I think I got it.¡± She warned her two forced temporal companions, after a long teaching session. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes, letting all the information she had absorbed fill her brain. Every single speck of dust, all the noises, every one of the blood stains, bone pieces, every single stab, the dust that had moved at being stepped on. Everything she had smelled, heard, seen and touched. At that moment, she remembered everything. ¡­ Siberina watched how Velvet closed her eyes in a trance. When she opened them, the blue had disappeared, replaced by vertical lines that moved left to right and vice versa at amazing speed. She looked away. Her paradigm couldn¡¯t take a stream of information without her mind collapsing, and looking directly at her eyes at that moment would share Velvet¡¯s thoughts with her. Cornelius did the same, choosing to look outside the window. After two long minutes, Velvet blinked slowly a few times. ¡°Three twenty one, someone knocked on the door. Iren opens it, they talk for half a minute. He lets them inside.¡± Velvet took a few steps as in a trance. ¡°The person moved too much. It¡¯s a man. Nervous.¡± She blinks again. ¡°Iren goes out. Brings tea. The other person sits on the bed. Waiting. Iren sits next to him with the tea. Right side. First stab happens at Three forty six. It goes between the fifth and the sixth ribs, under the left armpit. The weapon doesn¡¯t stop. Goes through sternum, fourth and third right ribs, exits on right shoulder. Clean cut.¡± Something like that would be impossible, unless some magic was at play. ¡°Depth of initial stab, eighteen centimeters. Iren was holding tea, left hand. Stab done with right hand. Weapon in reverse grip. Time until death due to blood loss, two minutes. No chance of recovering.¡± Getting your heart cut in half won¡¯t kill you instantly. The brain will go as long as there¡¯s oxygenated blood. ¡°Iren grabbed the murderer''s hand. With gloves. Both rolled on the floor. Iren got overpowered. Second stab on right eye. Death. Third stab on chest. Fourth stab on chest. Fifth stab on chest¡­¡± Waiting for Velvet to stop counting the stabs, Siberina closed her eyes. ¡°Twenty third stab on chest. He gets up. Goes to the bathroom. Cleans his hands. Nervous. The weapon falls to the floor. He falls on his knees. He pukes on the toilet. He cleans his hands again. He cleans his face. Again¡± ¡°It is four o¡¯clock. He leaves¡± Getting out of the trance, Velvet starts hyperventilating, sweating and gagging. She goes to the toilet and pukes. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. Feeling hands on her scalp, she winced, noticing it¡¯s Siberina moving her hair away from her face and the toilet, holding it in a ponytail. Shaking a bit, Velvet gets up, going to the sink to clean her face and mouth, uncaring of the previous blood there. Grabbing onto the sink sides, she lifted her face to look at her reflection on the mirror. ¡°You look fine. Very cute.¡± Siberina said next to her, making Velvet glare annoyed at her, before taking a deep breath and leaving the bathroom. Massaging her temples. Velvet started talking again ¡°The murderer is a man in his twenties, one meter, seventy nine centimeters, sixty eight kilograms¡± Only one person in the train fitted all these boxes. ¡°Nathaniel¡­¡± Velvet groaned, saying the murderer¡¯s name. Cornelius nodded, arriving at the same conclusion. Then, he went towards the door, followed by Siberina. ¡°Are you going to confront him?¡± ¡°Of course not, you silly!¡± Siberina laughed politely ¡°We don¡¯t know his strengths or desires. Fighting an unknown mage can be a disaster. He is from Mirel, right? Maybe he is an Inquisitor, hunting stray magicians. Now that we know his identity, we can protect ourselves better.¡± It sounded like cheap excuses, all three of them knew it. ¡°What about the rest of the passengers?¡± ¡°That¡¯s for them to worry about.¡± That said, they left, leaving Velvet in the room alone. She stood there for a few seconds, waiting for them to leave. ¡°Are most mages like this?¡± ¡°Are you really surprised?¡± Hyde answered her, ¡°they are waiting for you to ask for protection.¡± ¡°They can wait.¡± Going back to Iren¡¯s suitcase, she picked the revolver and the bullets. Then, she picked the notebook, applying magic to it. Having the same paradigm, Velvet found some parts of the notebook strange, but, since she didn¡¯t really trust those two, she didn¡¯t do anything before. Soon, a paper bird bloomed. Staring at Velvet, it flew towards the corpse, pecking on Iren¡¯s brain. A tiny hand grew from it, the skin made of tightly braided roots. Followed by an arm, longer than a human and thinner. Iren¡¯s Doyle familiar, a little, long armed and long legged, old man made of roots and with a beard made of branches, looked at Velvet, not before looking at the corpse, his dark eyes emotionless. ¡°A lust demon,¡± Hyde said. ¡°That is a lust demon? It¡¯s so ugly¡­¡± Before realizing, Velvet said that in a low voice, then, she panicked, realizing she just insulted a demon. ¡°Apologies! Wait, the desire to tell my thoughts, is that the lust you mean? I guess that¡¯s good for a detective, even when that didn¡¯t serve him much.¡± ¡°You figured it out yourself. Good, not so useless.¡± The demon said, picking his nose. ¡°Green but has potential, good.¡± ¡°Oh, you want to become my familiar?¡± It wasn¡¯t impossible for mages to have more than one familiar. Velvet wasn¡¯t picky. ¡°I don''t like young women. Don''t summon me until your hair is gray. No, I¡¯m just offering a little deal, since you didn¡¯t sell me to those two.¡± ¡°And I don¡¯t like rooty old geezers. Is the deal killing someone?¡± If it was, Velvet already had one murder in order. She didn¡¯t want another. ¡°No, stop guessing.¡± He shut her up, before picking his nose. ¡°First, answer me a few things. I remain unconvinced.¡± Aren¡¯t you a bit too carefree? Pull that finger out your nose! ¡°Okay, but for any question I answer correctly, I can ask you one.¡± Velvet knew how those games worked, so at least she wanted to win something. ¡°Deal. Why do you think Cornelius called you here?¡± ¡°To test me and set me as bait,¡± Velvet admitted. ¡°If Nathaniel is an Inquisitor, he¡¯ll keep killing mages. Those two are together, so I¡¯m the weakest one. Either I fold and submit to them, or I risk getting attacked.¡± Velvet was sure now that they already knew who the murderer was before calling her, so the only reason they did it was to see her abilities, and see if she was worth keeping. It was normal for big mage families to bring outsider magicians under their name. But the treatment they received was that of servants, and almost every wandering magician Velvet had talked to warned her against them. Especially if they were young and inexperienced, since they risked getting sexually assaulted by the true family members. That was also the reason why they didn¡¯t go to bring down Nathaniel. To them, he now worked as Velvet¡¯s enemy, not theirs. ¡°Good. Ask.¡± ¡°What is one spell that I don¡¯t know and I can use based on my paradigm to protect myself from Cornelius'' orders?¡± The lust demon lifted his finger, which lighted, then, the ball of light went to Velvet¡¯s head, showing her a new spell. That was easier than what Siberina did¡­ ¡°How big is the chance of you chickening out and going to them for help?¡± The corner¡¯s of Velvet lips curled ¡°Zero¡± Then, she added ¡°What is one offensive spell that I don¡¯t know and I can use based on my paradigm?¡± The demon laughed ¡°Do you want your paper figurines to explode?¡± Chapter 16. Bang! ¡°So, do I pass?¡± ¡°Barely. You have some overconfidence, but it¡¯s good enough¡± ¡°Well, you have not,¡± Velvet mocked him. ¡°First, tell me what you want.¡± ¡°To take every single belonging of Iren and me back to his family. It''s at the Mergifari, so it poses you no trouble, since it¡¯s your destination.¡± ¡°How do you¡­?¡± ¡°The route you¡¯re taking, added to being a young mage. It¡¯s obvious.¡± ¡°Reward?¡± ¡°My help until arriving at the Mergifari. You will need it.¡± ¡°And second?¡± ¡°Try to get information about the Graham and Ropertti families abilities.¡± ¡°Graham probably uses some envy, or envy¡¯s variations. He can cause skin to sicken, and give orders to people,¡± Velvet didn¡¯t care about selling them, since she didn¡¯t trust them, ¡°Ropertti gave me this,¡± she gave the container Siberina gave her to the demon. ¡°It¡¯s supposedly medicine, but I¡¯m not gonna use it.¡± The demon opened it, licking the inside with a shining purple tongue with white stripes. ¡°It¡¯s not poisonous, and it will heal you, but it will also slow your magic down.¡± If there was a reason Velvet was trusting the demon, it was simple. They worked with deals, so, as long as the final deal was good, he couldn¡¯t go back on his word. ¡°Slowing my magic when there¡¯s a murderer. Shameless. Madam Dorna wasn¡¯t wrong when she called mages scammers.¡± Realizing she said the last part out loud, she glared at the demon, ¡°stop.¡± ¡°It will stop when I go back to my pocket dimension.¡± ¡°So it''s a passive skill¡­ Why doesn''t Hyde have any?¡± ¡°... I¡¯m a lesser demon. You know that.¡± She spoke her thoughts out loud again. Now Hyde was offended. ¡°Let¡¯s make a deal already and turn you off.¡± ¡°You will bring Iren Doyle¡¯s belongings, remains and familiar back to the Doyle family at the Mergifari. As an extra, you will try to learn as much as you can on the Graham and Ropertti families. The reward for that would depend on the information acquired. In exchange, I will aid you until arriving at the Mergifari. I will not be held accountable for decisions based on your stupidity, and if you choose to go against my advice, I won¡¯t be breaking the deal if you get harmed.¡± Velvet pondered a bit, ¡°I want you to add that if I do something against your advice, you still will have to support me.¡± ¡°Even if it''s unreasonable?¡± ¡°Yes. But don¡¯t worry! I am a very well behaved and obedient girl, I won¡¯t give you any problems!¡± Not convinced, but having no other option, the demon accepted, ¡°Deal. Now, recite my name. Baraviodos.¡± ¡°Baraviodos.¡± The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°I¡± ¡°I¡± ¡°Offer this deal under Andras Apolyon.¡± When his name was spoken, Velvet noticed the atmosphere changing, the feeling of being watched gave her goosebumps. She felt something in her head, a string of information that covered what they had talked about. Reading it a few times, she didn¡¯t find any problem or exploitable loophole. ¡°Accept this deal under Andras Apolyon.¡± She felt a pinch in her mind, the deal sealing in her. Something flickered in her hand, under the glove. She took it off, undoing for a moment the papers that were working as skin, and saw how, under the Esca, a purple and white colored symbol had grown over her raw skin. Purple mixed with white. The colors that represented lust. The symbol was like two distorted A¡¯s, one normal and one inverted, that almost made a star. A symbol no one would go against, and would disappear once the Devil¡¯s Deal was complete. When it appeared in her skin, the feeling of being watched stopped. Baraviodos extended his long arm, ¡°Give me Iren¡¯s notebook.¡± Velvet did that, then, the demon held the open notebook on his left hand, with his right hand empty, separating and extending them. She felt the surge of magic, the blood sliding down the walls, closer and closer to the demon¡¯s empty hand. Iren¡¯s body, or what remained of it, started falling apart in tiny pieces, converging in his hand. In less than five minutes, all the blood, bones and other remains had melded together in a reddish, slimy ball. The demon put the ball inside the notebook, covering it in red fluids. Done that, he started entering the pages the same way he exited Iren''s brain, first the roots he was made from started undoing, then, little by little, he went inside the notebook, which fell to the ground once it was over. Picking it up, she talked to it, ¡°Won¡¯t people notice the corpse disappeared?¡± ¡°They will desire to not look inside, so they won¡¯t notice.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± Velvet packed Iren¡¯s suitcase, planning to take it to her own room. ¡°Do you think I can stay here? It is bigger than my room.¡± ¡°Someone got murdered here,¡± Hyde admonished her. ¡°But it¡¯s clean now. Well, there¡¯s still the smell. Ah, got it, no big room for Velvet.¡± She went back to her room, now with a suitcase that she hid under the bed and the bloody notebook that she put on the window. Throwing herself on the bed, she sighed, ¡°I puked all my breakfast, and now I¡¯m hungry.¡± Whatever, it''s not like she had to be somewhere, so she could stall until lunch. Still, she pulled the revolver and the three bullets out, staring at them. ¡°Do you know how to use a gun?¡± ¡°No. I can¡¯t afford them.¡± Bullets were expensive. Even Couger''s shotgun was property of Viroa, and she would take it off him were he to miss two shots, ¡°but it can¡¯t be too hard. Point and shoot, be careful of the recoil.¡± Iren only had three bullets, Velvet had checked the chamber. She planned on loading it, but the idea of it falling and going off on its own bothered her. Viroa had one, she once showed it to Velvet, laughing about how someone once knocked it off her table and got shot. Viroa had quite the arsenal, now that Velvet thought about it. Of course, she did talk about the old times, when she worked as a pirate hunter with her old crew. Very bloody and violent tales, but the kids loved them. Madam Dorna didn¡¯t. ¡°Leave the first chamber empty. That way nothing will come out were you to pull the trigger on accident.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± She did so, putting the bullets inside from the next chamber, closing it, and trying different poses. ¡°Check me out, I am the mage deletor. Deletor of mages. Bang!¡± ¡°The index is in the wrong position.¡± ¡°Use both hands.¡± ¡°Why are you tilting the gun?¡± ¡°Hold it firmly, I can see from here the weak grip you¡¯re making.¡± ¡°Where are you pointing at? Going to shoot the sun?¡± ¡°Keep your eyes on the target, stop glaring at my notebook.¡± ¡°Your notebook IS becoming my target.¡± Advised by two very judgemental demons, Velvet was being forced to learn the basics at the same time she was losing her patience. ¡°Can you at least let me try first? It''s not like I¡¯m gonna shoot someone the next second!¡± Knock knock. Someone knocked on the door. ¡°Velvet, are you inside, I would like to talk to you.¡± Nathaniel''s voice sounded outside the door. Velvet pulled the trigger. Chapter 17. Cards Since the first chamber was empty, no one got a new hole. For now. ¡°Nathaniel! Oh, hello!¡± Velvet opened the cylinder, putting the empty chamber back as number one, afraid of another misfire. ¡°Right, hello. Can we talk?¡± No! Velvet¡¯s inner voice screamed. But refusing him outright would be kinda suspicious. Luckily, Velvet had a plan. ¡°R-right now? You see, I am with someone¡­¡± She tried to sound shy, then, in whispers, she playfully added ¡°Eeek! Stooop a moment!¡± It was a good thing she communicated with demons telepathically. If not, maybe Nathaniel would have thought she was with an old man and his son. The most he could have heard was Velvet moving around the room. ¡°Velvet¡­ I know you are alone¡­¡± He said almost with pity. She stopped caressing her own body and wiggling like an idiot. Well, I have Iren¡¯s body with me, so he¡¯s with me in spirit! ¡°I need to talk to someone.¡± She sighed, grabbing a few charms and opening the door. ¡°Come, sit on the bed.¡± Nathaniel thanked her, entering and going to sit. The next thing he saw was Velvet pushing herself on top of him, pressing something against his nose with her hand, her smile gone. Before realizing anything, he blacked out. ¡­ Nathaniel opened his eyes a bit. His mind still foggy, he tried to get up, but found it impossible. Realizing his hands and feet were tied to the posts of the bed, he opened his eyes in surprise, preparing himself for shouting for help. ¡°Scream and I¡¯ll shoot you.¡± A voice that he realized pertained to Velvet, welcomed him. She was standing against the door, pointing at him with a revolver. Velvet didn¡¯t bother to gag him, having put sound insulation charms in the room. Yes, that was one of the two spells Baraviodos showed her. She took some time to make some extra. She also took off his gloves, not finding any eye. Even Hyde and Iren¡¯s familiar agreed he was a normal human. Nathaniel closed his mouth for a few seconds, staring at her in silence. ¡°You don¡¯t have to do this Velvet¡­ I get that you¡¯re needy, but we can talk this ou-¡± ¡°What?! I¡¯m not needy!¡± He saw Velvet tensing up, an angry smile in her face, ¡°I¡¯m trying to not be killed!¡± ¡°By tying me up to the bed?¡± Nathaniel had realized Velvet was the kind to smile when bothered and smile when happy. She just had different kinds of smiles. This one right now was the bothered kind. ¡°You killed Iren Doyle.¡± She didn¡¯t bother to play him to make him slowly confess. She was a mage, not a detective. ¡°I didn''t- How do you know?¡± Under the pillow, Velvet had put Iren¡¯s notebook, with the lust demon inside, so that Nathaniel confessed more easily. ¡°The rich guy you screamed at. He¡¯s a mage.¡± Velvet didn¡¯t know if Nathaniel knew she was a mage, since she didn¡¯t use magic in front of him. So, being a petty person, she did the best thing she could. Snitching on others. And, about knocking him out, well, any girl could be carrying sleeping drugs in this day and age! Magic had nothing to do with it! He probably didn¡¯t even know the difference! Maybe he had a way to sense magicians, but, as long as nothing was confirmed, she would try to put Nathaniel against Cornelius. She would love to also put him against Siberina, but Nathaniel didn¡¯t know her. ¡°He saw me talking with you,¡± Velvet lied. ¡°And told me that you were the killer. With enough proof.¡± If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°I didn¡¯t kill him.¡± He repeated, ¡°I-I don¡¯t remember killing him. I just remember being in his bathroom, cleaning my hands from blood.¡± That would be when he puked in the toilet. ¡°What is the last thing you remember before that?¡± ¡°I¡­¡± He seemed lost in thought, trying to remember ¡°Nothing¡­ I was with Niko in our room, and then¡­ Nothing.¡± ¡°What about the weapon?¡± ¡°I-It was a knife, I don¡¯t know how I got it!¡± ¡°Where did you put it?¡± ¡°I¡­ threw it from the train. It¡¯s lost in the forest.¡± So you want me to trust you without checking if the weapon caused madness? Not convinced, Velvet kept silent. ¡°I don¡¯t know why this is happening¡­ I¡­ Please Mirel protect us.¡± Saying this, he closed his eyes, taking a deep breath and staying still. Did he fall asleep? In MY bed? Holding the revolver close, she lifted her foot and poked him on the waist. No reaction. Velvet decided to leave him there, grab her things and stay for a while in Iren''s room. No, she wasn¡¯t going to untie him, no way. And neither was she going to kill him, not before being sure he wasn¡¯t being mind controlled! And, to honor the Devil¡¯s Deal, she also grabbed Iren¡¯s suitcase. The notebook was below her pillow, now under Nathaniel¡¯s head. Slowly closing in, she slid her hand between the pillow and the mattress, grabbing the slippery thing. Velvet glared at Nathaniel for a moment. His eyes were open, and he was staring right at her in silence, expressionless. She jumped backwards, her back hitting the door. She pulled out the revolver, pointing at him. Nathaniel was sleeping, just like he was a minute ago. ¡°Hyde, Hyde, I didn¡¯t imagine that, right? He looked at me.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t see anything.¡± ¡°Baraviodos, you saw it, right?¡± ¡°No. I only saw you jumping away.¡± ¡°He was awake.¡± Deciding to leave the room as soon as possible, Velvet put the notebook in her pocket. ¡°I will go and speak with Niko, maybe he knows something.¡± She tossed a paper figurine under the bed, to monitor Nathaniel. Leaving carefully, she first went to leave the suitcases in Iren''s room, then she went to Niko¡¯s room. Knocking, she was first met with silence. ¡°Niko? Are you inside?¡± She hoped nothing happened to the kid. If Nathaniel really was getting controlled¡­ The door opened, a head poking out. ¡°Velvet? It¡¯s too early¡­¡± ¡°What do you mean early? It¡¯s around twelve, not early at all. How are you feeling?¡± ¡°Bored. Nath left again.¡± Again? ¡°I have some cards, we can play Rummy.¡± ¡°What is that?¡± ¡°A card game, I can teach you how to play¡± ¡­ The room the brothers shared was bigger than Velvet¡¯s, with two beds, one at each side, with enough space on the floor for them to play cards. They had played several games, Velvet making sure to lose every now and then. Now, having lost again, she used the thrill of victory that Niko was feeling to ask. ¡°Soo¡­ Why did Nathaniel left?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, he didn''t say anything. Adults things, I suppose. Maybe he¡¯s got a girlfriend.¡± A sharp and pointy girlfriend. Could kill a man. Killed a man, actually. Velvet mocked. ¡°You said again. Does he leave you alone often?¡± ¡°No¡­ he worries too much! But yesterday night, he left after I went to sleep. But I wasn¡¯t really sleeping, just pretending!¡± ¡°When did he come back?¡± ¡°No idea.¡± Niko shrugged. ¡°I ended up falling asleep for real. He was the one to pull me out of bed this morning. And he left again a few hours ago. Do you know where he is?¡± Tied up to my bed. ¡°Nope.¡± ¡°Maybe he really has gotten a girlfriend!¡± ¡°On a train? That¡¯s more a fling than a romance.¡± ¡°What¡¯s a fling?¡± Velvet blinked a few times, biting her tongue. ¡°A reeeally short and funny adventure adults have sometimes between them.¡± ¡°Just call it an adventure then.¡± ¡°But they are different.¡± ¡°In what?¡± ¡°Ehh¡­ Well, for starters, I don¡¯t think he¡¯s having a fling. He looks like the type to wait for marri- to take it slow and know the person beforehand.¡± ¡°He can be knowing her right now.¡± Determined to prove his theories, Niko had decided to fight to the death for them. Even when Velvet didn¡¯t want to go into that conversation. ¡°Hyde, help me.¡± ¡°You got yourself into this mess. You get yourself out.¡± ¡°Baraviodos. We have a deal.¡± ¡°You want to use a lust demon on a child?¡± ¡°No!¡± Velvet screamed in her mind. ¡°Ah, I¡¯ll figure out something. On my own.¡± Chapter 18. A new deal ¡°Aren¡¯t you too interested in your brother¡¯s shenanigans? Do you want to be a couples therapist?¡± Velvet mocked him, trying to change the subject. ¡°No. I wanna be a doctor, like dad.¡± He made a disgusted face, ¡°not an accountant like mom, that has too many numbers.¡± ¡°Doctors need to study too.¡± Didn¡¯t you say yesterday you wanted to be a detective? ¡°But the doctor''s way of studying is more entertaining! You get to poke bodies! Dad lets me see the morgue sometimes!¡± Grimacing, Velvet smiled, ¡°Aren¡¯t you too young for that?¡± ¡°No I¡¯m not!¡± Losing at cards this time, he glared at Velvet. ¡°Cheater. So, what about you? I don¡¯t think being so bad at cards counts as a job.¡± ¡°Me? Oh, I¡¯m just trying to make someone look at me.¡± Now it was Niko¡¯s turn to grimace. ¡°Uhm. Mom says that if a person doesn¡¯t value you, you should find someone else. There¡¯s too many fishes in the sea and that¡­¡± Velvet laughed, ¡°Well, that one is my tiny little fish, all lonely.¡± ¡°Still! Living your life for someone else is bad!¡± ¡°Does your mom say that?¡± ¡°Yes! And she is right!¡± ¡°Well, it wasn¡¯t always like that. At first, I wanted to replace the orphanage director when she retired. But that was impossible!¡± ¡°Why?¡± Now intrigued in someone else¡¯s life, Niko paid attention. ¡°Where I live, there aren''t that many kids, actually. The orphanage was only built after the catastrophe, and no one really wants to keep it standing after they grow up. Right now, it¡¯s basically standing because the kids older than twelve start taking some jobs.¡± ¡°Even you?¡± ¡°Especially me,¡± she laughed, ¡°I¡¯m the oldest, I learned to mend clothes, clean fish, fix fishing nets, repair leaks¡­ before being fourteen¡± She didn¡¯t bother to name all the things she could do. ¡°I wanted to be a teacher too. I am great with children, and great at teaching too!¡± ¡°But?¡± ¡°There¡¯s not enough kids at Casrey to make a school.¡± Velvet was lucky she could read before the incident. Madam Dorna taught her the remaining stuff (having a blind teacher was hard, but they did manage), and then Velvet teached the other kids. Couger was there too, but he was bad at teaching. ¡°I spent a few years just waiting for something to happen and give me a goal. Nothing caught my attention, since I had no dreams or aspirations. And it happened.¡± The first time she had the dream, she didn¡¯t think too much about it. She recognized the chained man from that day, and assumed it was just a memory. Then, the dream kept on happening. Every night. She was lucid during them, knowing she was dreaming. So she chose that as her goal. There wasn¡¯t anything else to it. It was just an everlasting dream, but it was enough for the dreamless girl. ¡°It happened¡­ you met a man that ignored you and chose to go for him¡­?¡± ¡°Yes, something like that!¡± ¡°Are you an idiot?¡± He didn¡¯t mean it in a bad way, more as in a ¡®I can¡¯t believe you¡¯. ¡°Yes, something like that.¡± She heard Hyde say in her head. ¡°Yes, something like that.¡± Baraviodos joined in. Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. ¡°It¡¯s a matter of perspective! You are the one that wants to be a doctor because of his father!¡± ¡°I also like poking corpses.¡± Niko answered, all seriousness. ¡°How is that better than my reason?¡± ¡°It is better.¡± No hesitation on his answer. I am sooo crushing you on the next game¡­ Someone knocked on the door, making Velvet flinch and almost pull out the revolver. Then she sended a signal to the paper figurine in her room. Receiving a normal answer, she calmed down. Velvet looked towards Niko, spelling with her mouth. ¡°Who is it?¡± ¡°Cornelius Graham. I want to talk to your companion.¡± ¡°My brother is not here.¡± ¡°Not him. The girl.¡± ¡°It¡¯s Miss Velvet for you. Aren¡¯t you a noble? Speak like it.¡± Getting up, she signaled Niko to stay there, before going out and closing the door behind her. Cornelius was there, his hand behind his back, his posture straight. Not waiting for him, she started walking away from Niko¡¯s room. He walked behind her, not changing his posture. ¡°And where is Miss Velvet planning to go?¡± ¡°To the train¡¯s kitchen. I''m planning to use your viscount privileges to get the meal I lost back.¡± She expected her words to anger the man, provoking him to see his abilities, but he just hummed, going along. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t he be angry? Rich kids are spoiled!¡± She asked Hyde and Baraviodos. ¡°It is different for mages. Intense emotions like anger make corrupting and losing control easier. No mage that flies off the handle fast lives long. Especially nobles, since their families are old enough to know how corruption works.¡± ¡°Tsk.¡± Cornelius cleared his throat, calling for Velvet¡¯s attention. ¡°Miss Velvet, a train¡¯s kitchen is called a galley, just so you know. If you¡¯re a knowledge mage, you should speak like it.¡± Velvet laughed, even when she didn¡¯t find it funny in the slightest. ¡°... Is that so?¡± They arrived at the kit- galley, the staff leaving slowly upon seeing Cornelius, the rumors of a Viscount in the train doing their job. She went to the counter, grabbing a piece of carrot cake (probably something the cooks did for the higher class rooms), and munching on it, while she waited for him to speak. She cringed when she saw Cornelius also fixing a plate of cake for himself. ¡°Personally, I prefer whiskey cake.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to do small talk with you. What do you want?¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t kill Nathaniel.¡± ¡°I know.¡± Upon hearing that, she quickly checked on the paper figurine in her room. It was still working as normal. Did Siberina tell him? Where is she now? ¡°Your paradigm is not focused on combat. Taking a chance when you can will save you from many problems.¡± ¡°I know.¡± If her paradigm could fight, Iren would be alive, not Nathaniel. ¡°How long have you had magic for?¡± ¡°A year.¡± Velvet lied. ¡°No. If you were a mage for a year, you would have killed him. A month, perhaps?¡± He didn¡¯t wait for her answer. ¡°Yes, a month. A novice mage going to the Mergifari.¡± Velvet took a step back, glaring at him, ¡°So?¡± ¡°They won¡¯t let you in. Guess Iren¡¯s familiar didn¡¯t tell you that, am I wrong?¡± She flinched when he mentioned Baraviodos. ¡°You are gonna have to back up those claims, just so you know.¡± ¡°You picked the wrong paradigm. Knowledge is something all noble families need, so they already filled up those places long ago. And the ones that didn¡¯t, they just simply can¡¯t afford the time and effort to raise one.¡± ¡°A valuable knowledge mage belongs to a family where they at least can trade some of their secrets for an entrance to the Mergifari. But, Miss Velvet, you don¡¯t belong to any mage family, right?¡± ¡°The magic knowledge you possess are scraps, barely worth noticing. The Doyle family won¡¯t even bother with you after you return their belongings. Not because of coldness, but because they are the kind of family that cannot afford extra mages.¡± Velvet didn¡¯t answer, and neither did Baraviodos. ¡°You will go to the Mergifari to get stuck on the door, Miss Velvet.¡± ¡°Is that all you wanted to tell me?¡± ¡°No, I want to offer you a deal.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t join your family.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want you to. Our knowledge mage places are filled already.¡± He took a step towards Velvet, who took another step backwards. ¡°I just want to make them better. Give me Iren¡¯s familiar, and I¡¯ll let you enter the Mergifari.¡± Chapter 19. Seven Velvet kept silent at that. Cornelius didn¡¯t pressure her, choosing to eat cake instead. ¡°Baraviodos.¡± ¡°What? Want me to give you a counteroffer? He is right, the Doyle family can¡¯t give you access to the Mergifari.¡± ¡°Did you know they knew about you?¡± The demon kept silent for a few seconds. ¡°Yes, killing a mage to obtain their familiar is quite common. Every mage only gets one summoning chant, and some mages get some better than others. Your familiar, for example, is weak, so you shouldn¡¯t worry about being hunted for him. But I¡¯m medium ranked, and that makes me quite the target.¡± That confirmed two things. One, Nathaniel was innocent, the murder being caused by possession, and two, the murder wasn¡¯t caused because of the disappeared girl, but because they wanted his familiar. ¡°And you stuck to me knowing that?!¡± ¡°My other option was to wait for them to bring another knowledge mage to force me out. I just picked the choice that didn¡¯t leave me waiting for my executors. Your appearance in the train was lucky for both sides. Just not for you.¡± ¡°Because it gave you a way to try to escape and it gave them a faster way to get you out?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°So they made me go to Iren¡¯s room and use the spell not for guessing the murder, but for pulling you out?¡± ¡°Yes, to get a mage¡¯s familiar, you need a mage of the same paradigm, cause they can sense where it¡¯s hidden.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t I lucky¡­ How can you force someone else¡¯s familiar to join you?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t. You eat it.¡± Velvet froze for a moment. ¡°What made you think I wouldn¡¯t eat you?¡± ¡°I saw you and figured you didn¡¯t know about that.¡± And he was right, Velvet cursed. That meant all previous guesses Velvet had before knowing this were wrong. They didn¡¯t want her, they just wanted the demon, and used her to get it. And the demon also used her, so she ended up in a mess she didn¡¯t need to be. ¡°I want a counteroffer.¡± Velvet resigned herself. ¡°We have a Devil¡¯s Deal.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t talk to me about the deal. Do you really think Cornelius isn¡¯t prepared for that?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If he wants you, it¡¯s because of the spells you know, right? The Doyle family is of the knowledge paradigm.¡± ¡°Knowledge and lust. He also wants my memories of the Doyle family and its secrets.¡± ¡°Well, I want half of the knowledge spells.¡± ¡°Half is too much. A quarter.¡± ¡°Half. And now I want fifteen percent of the lust spells. Without counting my previous rewards.¡± ¡°Why? You don¡¯t even need those.¡± ¡°I can sell them. You can even tell the Doyles my silence for those spells is for sale.¡± You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. She heard the demon muttering a string of words she didn¡¯t understand. Probably cursing her. ¡°Deal. Let¡¯s see you shake off the Graham now.¡± Stopping the talk with Baraviodos, she looked at Cornelius. Velvet knew she would lose in a fight, even without knowing the full extent of his abilities. Escaping from him, however¡­ The kitchen was long and narrow, since they were inside a train. Cornelius and Velvet were in the middle, one on each side, but Cornelius was close to the door they entered. There was a door on each side, to give easier access. ¡°How big is my chance of entering the Mergifari without your help?¡± ¡°I won¡¯t talk on absolutes, but close to zero.¡± She didn¡¯t trust him at all. You could make a deal with a demon, but humans could lie, and they lied kinda easily. Fool Velvet once, shame on her, fool her twice, shame on her again, but at least she was a fast learner. She smiled, filling a glass with cold water and drinking it slowly. ¡°I¡¯ll take those odds.¡± Then, she threw the glass with a paper figurine inside, which exploded in small crystal pieces. Velvet rolled forwards on the floor, covering her ears with two sound insulation charms. Something slammed the place she was just a moment before. ¡°I order you to stop.¡± Sucks you showed that spell beforehand, doesn¡¯t it? ¡°Now is the time for you to assist me.¡± She told Baraviodos. Papers started coming out of Iren¡¯s notebook, twisting until becoming tiny lances that launched at Cordelius. He answered by dragging something on the air. Soon, the metal kitchen utensils close to him levitated, and launched themselves against the paper lances. Velvet didn¡¯t stare at it, running towards the door. ¡°There¡¯s people running in this direction,¡± Baraviodos warned her. Velvet used some strengthening charms, reinforcing her legs temporally to jump against the wall, and using that strength to push herself out of the door. ¡°Don¡¯t go to the left!¡± That was the direction the staff was. Velvet didn¡¯t want to put them in danger, going to her right. She couldn¡¯t hear what Cornelius said, but she felt the magic surge, him doing an order. The demon¡¯s could hear him, telling her. ¡°I order you to find the girl. Kill her if necessary.¡± The order was directed to the staff, who was entering the kitchen. It was stronger than when he used it before. ¡°Is he really using normal humans?¡± Velvet complained. There were five staff members at the exit, some grabbing their heads in confusion, some picking knives. As she suspected, Cornelius didn¡¯t need consent to order people around. ¡°Any mage does that. Human lives are expendable for mages.¡± Baraviodos said. Gritting her teeth, Velvet opened the door to the next cabin. At much as she hated him, she knew fighting him was suicide. A sharp knife grazed her shoulder before stabbing itself to the door, opening a deep wound. Choking back a cry of pain, she crossed and closed the door. Velvet pulled Iren¡¯s notebook out, opening it. ¡°What are you doing?¡± ¡°I need paper, this has paper.¡± Ripping out the pages, they started floating, each one of them sticking to the door, closing it shut. Velvet started taking steps backwards, covering the bleeding cut with the hand that wasn¡¯t holding the notebook. She couldn¡¯t hear anything, using the charms to protect herself from an order, but she felt the vibrations on the floor. The staff members Cornelius hypnotized started stabbing, hacking and even clawing at the door. She had ten seconds at most. The kitchen was situated in the middle of the train, and Velvet went to the right. ¡°I need to keep him away from Niko¡­¡± She also checked the paper figurine in her room, finding it gone. From the ten she had made yesterday, only seven remained, with none of them being able to put up a fight against anyone. Laughing, Velvet wanted to cry. But surrendering wasn¡¯t an option, her life on the line. Nathaniel and Siberina were unknown variables. She didn¡¯t know where the woman was, and whether Nathaniel was friend or foe was debatable. Still, she couldn¡¯t keep on going to the right, too many unknowns there. She needed to change direction. Her gaze moved around the cabin, stopping on the windows. ¡°... You want us to live, right?¡± She told Baraviodos, ¡°so start giving me the spells you promised. I need something to get out. Don¡¯t be stingy, our life depends on your generosity. Also, you better start putting in work right now, old man.¡± Chapter 20. Two The door broke down, unable to withstand the blows. Like sleepwalkers, the staff members entered the cabin, searching for Velvet. Cornelius stood back, not wanting to take a surprise attack. He didn¡¯t bother to keep any person close, a row of knives surrounding him. ¡°She¡¯s not here¡­¡± One of them said, going towards the next cabin, followed by the others. When they arrived in the middle of the cabin, paper birds jumped at them, sticking to their eyes, ears and mouths, making them fall. Some of the birds went to the other cabin, attacking Cornelius, who just waved his hand, the row of knives cutting the birds to pieces easily. Cornelius sighed, realizing that spell was of the inoffensive type, just made to restrain a few humans. Then he waited for a moment, to prevent any sudden surprises. He was going to start walking when a white thing caught the corner of his eye. A paper figurine was in the window. Not one, four. One on each window around him. The first paper figurine waved at him. Then, it exploded. Covering his face with his arm to prevent crystal shards from damaging his eyes, the sudden wind pushed Cornelius back. A shadow came running straight at him from the paper birds on the other wagon. It was Velvet, with a knife in hand. Cornelius moved his hand, the rows of knives launching themselves in her direction. Velvet ignored them, a red thing coming out from the notebook and taking the direct hits. It didn¡¯t prevent some from cutting her, but it shielded her organs. Are they using Doyle''s corpse as a meat shield? He thought, seeing Velvet throw her knife towards him. Using a normal weapon against him was useless, and, even when Velvet used some strengthening charms, he had nothing to fear from it.. Making a motion with his hand to move his knives and intercept it, he froze for a moment. A paper figurine was grabbing the knife! Boom! Velvet kept on running, then she jumped at him, planning on kicking him and pushing him down. Her boots hit something hard and metallic. A hand grabbed her leg, bringing her down and slamming her to the hard ground. Velvet gasped, the air in her lungs forced out. Coughing, she looked up. The smoke cleared slowly, and she saw that part of Cornelius'' clothes were destroyed with the explosion, leaving a metallic thing below. Is he wearing armor? It¡¯s not fair¡­ Blood and bones, not hers, covered her leg, making it so that she could escape his grasp and slide backwards. ¡°Didn¡¯t we agree to not fight him?!¡± Baraviodos scolded her. ¡°I wasn''t trying to fight him! I just wanted to push him away to run in his direction!¡± Cornelius lifted one hand, pointing to his ears. He wants to tell me something? ¡­ Does he think I¡¯m that stupid¡­? She didn¡¯t try to use the revolver on him. If he could control metals, that would be wasting bullets. Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. Velvet got up slowly, licking some blood on her lips, that one was hers. I¡¯m really outmatched here¡­ Not only was she way weaker than Cornelius, but his paradigm completely bested hers on direct combat. Controlling metal is not from envy, it¡¯s from pride¡­ Haha, I was wrong at that too. Velvet laughed. She had lost, before even reaching the Mergifari. Looking at her blood running down her clothes, she took off the sound insulation charms, just before two shadows walked behind Cornelius. Siberina and Nathaniel. Siberina got closer, directing a soft smile to Velvet. ¡°There was nothing you could do, you did your best.¡± ¡°Then why,¡± she gasped, the pain intense, ¡°are you still controlling him? You don''t need him anymore.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± She laughed. ¡°My control works differently from Cornelius. Nathaniel is already dead.¡± Velvet opened her mouth, too stunned to speak. ¡°You wanted to save him, didn¡¯t you? Fancied yourself a hero?¡± ¡°Since when¡­?¡± ¡°Since Iren¡¯s murder, of course!¡± Had Siberina been puppeteering Nathaniel¡¯s corpse all this time? Velvet felt sick, the blood loss not helping. That meant everything, him getting nervous and scared upon discovering Iren¡¯s murder, him going to her room for help and not remembering anything, was a lie. It was their doing all this time. She looked at him, noticing that he was carrying a long, strange knife. ¡°I made him throw it from the train, you know? To keep in character,¡± she said, noticing where Velvet was looking. ¡°Then I went back for it. Took me a few hours, but I found something interesting!¡± ¡°Stop playing.¡± Cornelius interrupted. ¡°Grab the notebook and kill her, this has gone on for too long.¡± ¡°True. We should stop playing, right Velvet?¡± She beckoned to Nathaniel, who started walking towards them. ¡°Are you even going to make him kill me? Can¡¯t you do it yourself?¡± Do you even have some humanity?! Was what she wanted to say. She didn¡¯t cry. She was too angry for that. Never having felt so powerless, so helpless. ¡°Velvet, you are so expressive.¡± It was all Siberina said. ¡°I like that, Cornelius is too serious, he is the kind that needs a hand to show emotions.¡± ¡°Your face when you hate someone, it¡¯s so cute.¡± Velvet saw Nathaniel raising his knife, his face expressionless. Stab! Velvet closed her eyes, a normal reaction. Something hit the floor. Someone cursed something. Someone laughed. ¡°Siberina!¡± She heard Cornelius shout, which made her open her eyes. There was blood. Nathaniel had chopped off Cornelius'' arm. The metal that covered his body couldn¡¯t protect him from the knife, the same way that bones couldn¡¯t protect Iren. Knives flew, some digging on Nathaniel¡¯s body, pushing him away, and some went towards Siberina, who gracefully jumped backwards, evading every single one of them. It reminded Velvet of those contortionists that went with the circus. Velvet forced her body to also get away from the knives. She was now in the middle of a battle between two official mages, close to the wall and gasping. ¡°Why are they betraying each other now? Is it for you again?!¡± She asked Baraviodos. ¡°I don¡¯t think so¡­ But it works for us.¡± Something nailed to her skin. Hyde had come out, using his spiderweb to stitch her bleeding cuts shut. ¡°Siberina, I order you to stop!¡± Cornelius said. His wound had been closed with metal, but he now lacked an arm. Still, Velvet doubted he would go down just for that. Siberina stopped for a moment, the order taking effect, but then, she laughed, her body shaking. Nathaniel¡¯s body got up, knives impaled deep on him. ¡°Cornelius, oh Cornelius! It¡¯s so sad you couldn¡¯t see it! But don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll take you down below soon.¡± Below. Velvet froze at the word. So did Cornelius, before twisting his mouth in disgust. Down below. Velvet looked at Siberina in silence. Her bun had messed up a bit, and her smile, even when it had that politeness from before, now it had a hint of madness. She took special note of her eyes. Siberina¡¯s eyes were purple, an elegant color. Now, in the middle of the purple, something red was looming. Mental corruption. A sinked. A witch. Chapter 21. Witch Witches were the natural enemies of mages. Corrupted magicians, their minds unrepairable. They killed every mage that crossed paths with them. No one knew how to cure a sinked. Once a mage became a witch, it was either kill or be killed. The only reason witches gave about their murderous tendencies towards mages was: We have seen the bottom of the primeval sea. We''ve seen what lies beyond the waves. We want to show you all what lies down below. Come with us. Come with us. Down below. Velvet didn''t mind getting shown something, but she wanted to be alive after seeing it! That meant Siberina had lost it, Velvet cursed. Aren''t you supposed to be a noble?! Shouldn''t you know better?! Siberina''s gaze shifted to her, the soft smile in her lips growing. Velvet flinched. She didn''t say it out loud, give her some slack! Fortunately, Cornelius used that to rip and throw the door he was close to towards Siberina, who went outside from the window Velvet had exploded. Cornelius'' control on metal just spans two and half meters¡­ He uses the inertia to thrust the knives, but he can¡¯t change their direction once they go out of that range. He also can¡¯t control metal objects already in movement, if not, Nathaniel wouldn¡¯t have cut off his arm. He needs some time to get control over them. Velvet thought. Then, she repeated that to Baraviodos. ¡°Seems like it. He must have half an Esca.¡± Iren also had half an Esca. Velvet was the only one there with it barely open. Something curled on her waist, dragging her towards Cornelius. It was a dark red chain. ¡°An artifact. He must¡¯ve been keeping it saved for now.¡± Baraviodos said. Velvet readied her two remaining paper figurines; now that Cornelius had another problem, she could try to escape! ¡°Put those down. Go deal with the human.¡± He said, putting her between himself and Nathaniel. ¡°Oh, now you want to team up? After trying to kill me?!¡± ¡°You can die with a grudge if you prefer. I can also order the people here to stall him, were you to be hard headed,¡± he stopped for a moment, before adding, ¡°the thing puppeteering your friend is Siberina¡¯s familiar, located on his brain. With your skills, dealing with a human without being stabbed is doable.¡± Velvet dusted off her clothes. Hyde had stitched up her wounds, a golden thread keeping them closed, so she was not bleeding out anymore. Looking at Nathaniel, she got ready. ¡­ Cornelius'' reason to team up with Velvet was simple. Siberina was a skilled assassin, and the moment he took his eyes off her for a second to deal with something else, he would be dead. She was now on top of the train¡¯s cabin, her shoes tapping on the ceiling. It sounded as if she was dancing. He held the chain shaped artifact with his remaining hand. Carni¡¯s Spine, that¡¯s how it was called. Made with the spine of a mage related to Cornelius, it had the ability of never missing its target. The price was, every five strikes, it had to be fed a quarter of a liter of the wielder¡¯s blood. The wielder could only be of the Graham¡¯s family. This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Cornelius had picked this artifact from the family¡¯s treasury specifically to counter Siberina. No mage trusted another, even more when the only loyalty was bought with money. And even more when it was a Ropertti. He didn¡¯t need the artifact against Velvet, it would be a waste of blood, but Siberina was dangerous. He wouldn¡¯t have hired her if she wasn¡¯t. What he didn¡¯t expect was for her to become a witch. Her father was one of the weirdest mages Cornelius had seen, and he was sane! Some paradigms needed the mages to act wild to prevent corruption. Maybe Siberina acting ¡®normal¡¯ before had pushed her over the edge? Still, there was no use to think about the why now. Now, he had to kill Siberina. ¡­ Two paper figurines. Three bullets. Some charms. A bloody notebook. That was all she had. Not all, she still had herself. Walking towards Nathaniel, she made no comment, nor asked anything. Neither did Nathaniel, or whatever was controlling him. The jig was up, so there was no need to keep the joke going. He was no longer Niko¡¯s brother. Velvet felt the apathy part of her paradigm cover her. Unfeeling, everything in the cabin became information. She let her two paper figurines fall, each one going to a different side. The remaining paper birds, who previously were stopping the staff on the other cabin, came back, swirling around. Nathaniel cut the air, every slash cutting the paper birds that were too close to him. The mage he had killed, and the one he had injured, got hit with a surprise attack. Now, lost that possibility, as long as Velvet didn¡¯t let him get close, she would win. He started running towards her, in an attempt to shorten their distance. Boom! One paper figurine gone, exploding under his feet. As long as she hid the figurines with magic, he couldn¡¯t see or detect them. Unlike Cornelius and Siberina, his eyes were human. Boom! This time, the explosion came from over him, scarring his body and making him unable to move. The difference between a human and a mage was big. If not for the surprise attacks, Nathaniel would have fallen sooner. Cornelius was right, she could take him easily. Velvet looked at his back, he was trying to get up, his body burned. She pulled out the gun, targeting the back of his head. She didn¡¯t close her eyes, nor did she avert her gaze. A gunshot sounded, blood and brain matter dirtying the train even more. Nathaniel fell, his head split open. He was dead. Velvet walked towards him, kneeling next to him, then, she pushed her fingers inside his brain, searching. There. ¡°I got you.¡± A green snake, covered in blood, got pulled out. Since it was acting as a parasite, directly controlling Nathaniel, it didn¡¯t bring the pocket dimension, becoming unable to hide. Velvet grabbed its head, lifting it over her face. You deserve this. Opening her mouth, she started eating it from the tail, making sure to chew. It tasted awful, the metallic taste of blood mixed with the raw snake flesh and with the crunching of bones breaking. Still, Velvet didn¡¯t plan on enjoying it. No, eating it was an expression of hate. Repressing her need to gag, she kept on chewing. By the time she was halfway done, the snake had stopped moving. But she kept on eating, pushing the rest of its body into her mouth and swallowing. She was done. The snake was gone. Velvet slid a finger on her lips, catching a bit of blood that had escaped and licking it. A stream of information flooded her brain. The spells that Siberina knew, the life she had lived together with her familiar, getting hired by Cornelius to kill Iren, the things they had done. She saw Cornelius luring Nathaniel that night, ordering him to open his mouth and put the familiar in his brain, killing him in the process. Did they believe doing that was worth it? She got up, turning around to confront Cornelius and Siberina. Chapter 22. Scales Cornelius was having a hard time. The same way he picked an artifact to counter Siberina, she had done exactly the same thing, using a set of glass balls, similar looking to eyes, that she had been throwing at him from a distance. That obliged him to change the target of the Carni¡¯s Spine, from Siberina to the ball she was launching at the moment. The balls had the ability to bounce on inorganic matter, like walls, but they were hard as steel were to hit organic matter. An example of organic matter was Cornelius himself. He had his set of armor covering him, but the balls still ignored that, which had cost him a broken rib. After all, Siberina launched them with enough strength for them to be miniature cannonballs. Fifteen strikes, three quarters of a liter of Cornelius¡¯ blood gone, and he hadn¡¯t hit Siberina once. ¡°How is that possible?¡± He asked his familiar. ¡°We assumed she had a strength similar to ours, but I¡¯m not so sure anymore¡­¡± Cornelius used the moment Siberina jumped close to him in a taunting manner to take a look at her hands. Like most mages, she was wearing gloves. ¡°Hm?¡± She noticed the look. ¡°Curious as to what stage I¡¯m in?¡± Removing her right glove, the sight froze Cornelius momentarily. ¡°It¡¯s barely open?! Are you trying to trick us?!¡± His familiar shouted in his head. ¡°Oh, wrong glove, apologies.¡± Removing her left glove, a fully opened eye looked at them. It wasn¡¯t mocking them, but it felt as it was. Now Cornelius did indeed freeze. A fully awakened Esca. It was no wonder he didn¡¯t even manage to get closer to her. Even the head of his family would have trouble dealing with her. ¡°Still so expressionless¡­¡± Siberina sighed in disappointment, looking behind him. ¡°But you are so much more expressive, Velvet!¡± Cornelius didn¡¯t take his gaze away from Siberina, she was the most dangerous thing right now. He didn¡¯t have anything to fear from a novice mage, and without him, Velvet didn¡¯t have any chance of defeating Siberin- Bang! Something hit the back of his head. A gunshot. A bullet. Cornelius didn¡¯t even have time to acknowledge the fact he was dead. ¡°Pride really got you twice.¡± Velvet said to his corpse. ¡°Two times you let someone weaker than you do a surprise attack.¡± Then, she changed from pointing at Cornelius¡¯s corpse to point at Siberina¡¯s head. ¡°You will miss that shot. Aren¡¯t you scared of fighting the big bad witch alone?¡± ¡°You¡¯re not a real witch. You¡¯re just some low cost pretender.¡± There were memories of real witches in her familiar, and, even if Siberina was more close to a witch than a mage, she still lacked something. Siberina smiled at that. Her eyes with the looming madness didn¡¯t change, but she didn¡¯t deny Velvet¡¯s accusations. ¡°You knew I was gonna kill Nathaniel and eat your familiar. You bet on it.¡± ¡°Go on Velvet.¡± ¡°You are a gambler. A risk-taker.¡± The Gambling Paradigm, one of the ten original paradigms. Their magic was based on chance. Chance to meet people, chances for their actions to affect the people around them in extreme manners¡­ They liked to gamble with fate itself. This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°You are also a member of Chariot.¡± Velvet didn¡¯t gain any information about that organization from the familiar, which only increased her belief that it was all part of Siberina¡¯s ¡®gamble¡¯. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s correct. What will you do now? You can¡¯t defeat me.¡± ¡°I know, but you won¡¯t kill me. You wanted me to kill Cornelius, and you want the Mergifari to know about Chariot. You want me to be the ¡®messenger¡¯,¡± Velvet smiled. ¡°Am I wrong?¡± ¡°Yes, very wrong!¡± Siberina walked towards her. Velvet shot, the bullet missing Siberina¡¯s face for a few millimeters. ¡°Told you were going to miss.¡± ¡°I had to try.¡± Siberina went past her, going to the damaged train¡¯s exit. Turning her head to see Velvet, she said, ¡°Get stronger. Once you lose everything you possess, we will meet again. It¡¯s our fate.¡± Forcing softly the door open, she caressed the door¡¯s frame with the tip of her fingers, before taking a step into the air and disappearing from Velvet¡¯s sight. Velvet stood there for a moment, the wind coming from the broken windows messing her hair. She put the gun down, leaned on the wall and slided down to the floor. She remained in that sitting position for a bit, breathing deeply. Then, she pushed her hair away from her face, forced a smile, got up, and went to the previous carriage, where the staff was. Now that Cornelius was dead, they were free of control, even then, they remembered what they did while being controlled. ¡°Where is the supervisor?¡± She asked the first person she saw. ¡°He¡­ he went to call the Scales¡­ Do I tell him to stop?¡± Scared of getting a mage angry, especially more after trying to kill her, he was wary of his words. The Scales, the full name being Scales of Poine, were a law enforcement organization that dealt with out of control or dangerous mages. His leader was part of the Mergifari¡¯s high command. Velvet knew this from Siberina¡¯s familiar. ¡°No, it¡¯s fine. Which number is the room that the viscount companion used? The woman with purple eyes.¡± ¡°It''s¡­ cabin number two miss.¡± ¡°Good. I¡¯m moving there. Tell someone to pick my luggage and bring it there, it¡¯s in the murder room. Also, is there a doctor or nurse on the train?¡± ¡°A doctor, yes.¡± ¡°Send them there in half an hour.¡± After saying that, she went to Siberina¡¯s room. If the Scales were coming, she had to be presentable, and that room had a shower and plenty of space. Velvet went to take a warm shower, cleaning the blood on her skin and hair. The cuts had been patched by Hyde, but having a medic check on them would be safer. After taking the shower, she dried her hair, noticing the staff had brought both her suitcases inside, setting them next to the bed. She dressed in a simple white nightgown that she had found in Siberina¡¯s wardrobe (she had taken her suitcase, so Velvet thought the sleeping dress was included in the high class room), letting her wounds breathe. Someone knocked on her door. She went to open it. A man, probably three or four times her size, was behind. Dressed in a red long open coat, white shirt and brown pants, dark skin with a nicely trimmed beard and a mustache with short black hair under an aviator¡¯s hat with goggles, he towered over Velvet, making her have to look up to look at him. Velvet wasn¡¯t short, she was around a meter seventy, but that man was more than two meters tall! ¡°Good afternoon miss, heard you needed a doctor?¡± Looking him up and down, she squinted at him, ¡°An army doctor? Or a Scale doctor?¡± ¡°Both, actually. I have a few questions, but we can talk after checking your wounds.¡± ¡­ Velvet didn¡¯t need to hide anything, and she didn¡¯t, recounting the things that happened since she boarded the train. Baraviodos also talked to the doctor, after confirming he was indeed a Scale. The man, named Irsen Kartal, was from the continent of Idir. He was part of the operations taking part in keeping mages in check during the Mergifari¡¯s opening. He was also one of the selectors. Velvet laughed nervously at that. ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry. In fact, that gives you a bigger chance. The Grahams have gained several political enemies over the years. Some of them will surely try to make you pick them.¡± I don¡¯t want to be involved in politics¡­ She whined. After Kartal was done filling some papers, he left, and Velvet swore she just saw a wyvern flying off in the distance after that. She was planning on taking a nap, too tired to do anything else. She had wanted to talk to Niko, but the kid had closed the door firmly and didn¡¯t let anyone in. Velvet respected his wishes, letting him grieve. Chapter 23. Something to chase Before taking a nap, Velvet looked at the top of the night stand. A strange knife was resting there. Kartal had given it to her, and yes, it was the one Nathaniel had used. She had asked him if, since it was a murder weapon, it was supposed to be taken by them. He had told her that in mage squirmishes, it was normal to keep spoils of victory, as long as one wasn¡¯t afraid of antagonizing the people behind the dead mage, in this case, the Ropertti¡¯s and the Graham¡¯s. Velvet decided to not touch Cornelius¡¯ belongings, only taking the things that Siberina left, that being the knife and a deck of tarot cards. The Tarot cards were on the coffee table, a ¡®parting gift¡¯ from Siberina. She even left the instructions, so that Velvet could understand the meaning. Page of Wands, Page of Swords and The Tower. Page of Wands, representing initiative and risk-taking. Page of Swords, called the Watchman, messenger or spy. The Tower, representing disaster. Is all of this about Siberina? Taking a risk as a double agent to bring disaster? Or is it a past-present-future scenario? The Page of Wands usually is a mischief-maker, independent and individualist. Could it refer to myself? ¡°Ugh! The point of Tarot cards is that the answer is so vague it can be interpreted in so many ways, always ending up being correct!¡± She had asked Kartal, but he didn¡¯t give any ¡®non vague¡¯ answer either. A part of her wanted to ransackle Cornelius'' corpse, but she wasn¡¯t planning on provoking a family of pride mages, they probably held grudges very well (also, by the way Kartal told her that, it seemed he was warning her against it), but gamblers¡­ She was almost sure it wasn¡¯t a problem. Siberina was still alive, after all, and she had taken most of her things with her, only leaving the knife and the cards. The knife was sheathed with some strange looking roots. Apparently, it had the ability to cut down anything that didn¡¯t come from trees. Velvet slowly unsheathed it, taking care to not cut herself. The blade was bluish gray in color, with wood grains in circular shapes. She poked it with her nail. It¡¯s not like it was similar to wood, it was made of wood. ¡°For being a pointy plank, you were quite the trouble, you know?¡± From Siberina¡¯s familiar, she knew its name was Sinoe¡¯s Baslard, and it was made from some wood taken from hell. It should be buried in high nutrition soil after ten days out, for at least for a full month, before being used again. Also, it had to be watered. Like a plant. Apparently, it had still five days of use. ¡°So you are useless for most of your life? You good for nothing, couldn¡¯t you pick this month to hibernate?.¡± She kept on insulting the blade, even when it was technically innocent. ¡°I¡¯m going to use you to clean fish.¡± ¡°How much do you even cos-¡± Someone started knocking on the door. It was a soft knock, almost shy. Ah. She sheathed the blade again, putting it under the pillow. ¡°Niko, come in.¡± A few paper figurines (Velvet had already remade them), went to unlock the door with their combined efforts, letting the kid inside. If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. Niko¡¯s eyes were red from crying, and he looked disheveled, apparently not used to dressing up on his own. Velvet bit the inner part of her cheek in pity. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± It was what she said. ¡°You can hate and scream at me if you want.¡± She knew it wasn¡¯t her fault, since Siberina and Cornelius would have killed Nathaniel to kill Iren no matter her presence. Still, she didn¡¯t know what to say. ¡°I-I don¡¯t even know if I should hate you. No one wants to tell me what happened, they just¡­ they just tip toe over it!¡± ¡°Because what happened was cruel. Death is cruel, but what they did¡­¡± Velvet sighed. ¡°Do you want the full truth? I won¡¯t decorate it. But if the truth is what you want, I will tell you.¡± She understood why the other adults hid part of the truth, but she also understood the desire to know what really happened. After all, she had dealt with something similar. And she had been more difficult to deal with than Niko. ¡°I want the truth.¡± And so, Velvet told him the truth. ¡­ A few hours had passed before she was done, and Niko had run out of questions to ask. It took him a bit of explaining to accept that the man that woke him up this morning wasn¡¯t his brother any more. Both of them stood in silence for a while, until Niko started speaking. ¡°You¡­ you talked about waiting for something to happen that you could chase¡­¡± He looked at his tiny hands, opening and closing them. ¡°I didn¡¯t get what you meant by that, but now¡­¡± ¡°I want to become an Inquisitor.¡± He said, not looking at Velvet. ¡°It wasn¡¯t fair, what happened wasn¡¯t fair!¡± ¡°Nathaniel didn¡¯t do anything! And they, they! Didn¡¯t even think twice!¡± A tear fell on his hand. Velvet hugged him, letting him cry on her shoulder. ¡°It wasn¡¯t fair! It wasn¡¯t fair!¡± ¡°I know.¡± ¡­ Niko ended up falling asleep on her bed. She left him there, going out to breathe some air at the cabin Velvet had blown the windows off. The staff had cleaned the floor, and she was pretty sure Kartal had been involved in the handling of the bodies. ¡°You know,¡± she started saying to no one in particular, ¡°Madam Dorna was right. Mages do suck.¡± ¡°I would like to say,¡± Baraviodos said now, ¡°There¡¯s more neutral mages than bad mages.¡± ¡°What about good mages?¡± ¡°You killed two people right now to survive, how long do you think good mages last?¡± ¡°Good point. I still think I¡¯m in the ¡®good¡¯ category. Cornelius deserved what happened to him, and Nathaniel¡­ it was mercy at that point.¡± ¡°Does it even matter?¡± Now it was Hyde the one interrupting, ¡°Does being good or bad affect your chance of reaching that person?¡± ¡°It does. It matters to me. I don¡¯t want to become like them. If I have to reach him, at least I want it to be on my own terms.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t become like them, then. Not going out of your way to kill harmless people is very easy.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± Velvet smiled, ¡°You¡¯re right. I can do that.¡± Hyde was right, she decided. There was no rule that forced mages to become twisted, they chose that on their own, unless it was corruption. Cornelius could have chosen to leave Iren alone, and raise his knowledge mage slowly. He could have chosen to spend the money he spent on Siberina to buy grimoires. He could have chosen to confront Iren on his own, without involving Nathaniel. Velvet could have chosen to spend the night with Viroa and company, not rushing things. She also could have chosen to not use her paper figurines that first night, not giving away her existence as a knowledge mage to them. She could also have chosen to ignore Baraviodos, ruining their plans. But what was done was done. Velvet wasn¡¯t one to get hung up in the past. If she was strong enough the next time she and Siberina met, she would try to kill her. And if they never met again, it was fine too. ¡°What do you two think about what she told me? ¡®Once you lose everything you possess, we will meet again.¡¯¡± ¡°A bad omen, or another gamble of hers.¡± Said Hyde. Velvet did agree with that. She didn¡¯t know of the gambling paradigm beforehand, but now she knew they weren¡¯t prophets. Anything they said had a fifty percent chance of happening. That just makes it worse¡­ She complained inwardly. At least, she had tomorrow to rest, before taking Niko to his family at Wishbell, and leaving to find Saliman Ramis, the Blue Python¡¯s owner. Chapter 24. Invitation Adeline Graham sat in the initiation room. The initiation room was just at the Mergifari''s entrance, an enormous round room where the novice mages trying to get accepted at the Mergifari put themselves up for being selected. Similar to an auditorium, the seats were at different levels, in a circular fashion. The seating positions of all the selectors were based on their political strength and continent. Official mages didn¡¯t need to be close to someone to guess their strength, therefore, the lower seats were for the weakest selectors, the ones that could only afford one apprentice. Some of them were empty, since the official opening was more than two weeks later. Still, there was a way to enter the Mergifari as an apprentice sooner than the others. If you were a prince, or a mage with great capabilities, you could receive an official invitation, letting you skip the lines. Those mages were usually selected by royal families, so there wasn¡¯t much reason for the non senders to be here. Except there were some. Political reasons. And Adeline Graham needed to maintain some political connections. The middle seats were for the families that could afford three to five apprentices. Those were a bit fuller, some mages talking to others about their lives. Adeline was at the upper part of the middle seats. She would have loved to talk to the mages next to her, but the letter she had on her hands made her do otherwise. The sender was Irsen Kartal. It was about the acts that occurred on the train. She had sensed the death of a blood related member a day ago. And now she had the reasons. She read the letter again, repeating the sequence of the acts, and filling the blanks with what she knew. First, Cornelius had targeted Iren before boarding the train, due to the inner power struggle inside the family. That was because the current knowledge mage working for them was giving signals of losing control, so there was a debate of who would replace her. Both Cornelius and his brother had different preferences, deciding to support their choice in different ways. Cornelius wanted Iren''s familiar to increase the strength of his faction, so he hired Siberina, specialized on assassination, to deal with him. It worked nicely, the assassination completed seamlessly. Now, they only had to wait until arriving at Wishbell, where the knowledge mage could get Iren''s familiar. Here was where the original plans went different. Another mage, also of the Knowledge Paradigm, boarded the train. Adeline sighed; if his son had ignored the wandering mage and waited for HIS mage, everything would¡¯ve been fine. But he didn¡¯t. She understood why. They didn¡¯t know if the Doyles had a way to sense the death of a member, intervening before arriving at Wishbell and ruining the plan, so the introduction of a new variable was a blessing and a curse at the same time. Cornelius tricked her easily, which was obvious. He could¡¯ve won here and there, but then, another variable happened. Siberina. Adeline had always been wary of her family. Gamblers were a chance she didn¡¯t want to take, ever. But it seemed that Cornelius had a different opinion, taking the chance. And proceeding to lose the gamble. Adeline looked to her lower left. Someone was staring unblinkingly at her. Siberiald Ropertti. The head of the Ropertti family. When their gazes meet, he let out a mocking laugh. Dressed like a clown¡­ or a harlequin, a pair of mismatched eyes and some makeup, his torso stretched and contracted while he laughed, like an accordion. Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Adeline had to use all her willpower to not rip the letter into pieces, and the clown with it. Cornelius, why? Didn¡¯t I raise you to be smarter? Even if Siberina seemed well adjusted, you just can¡¯t trust a Ropertti. She returned her attention to the letter, still feeling Siberiald¡¯s gaze on her. Apparently, he didn¡¯t know anything about her daughter being part of Chariot. And he found it amusing when Irsen Kartal told him, laughing like a madman. Why can¡¯t Kartal deal with the Ropertti¡¯s? He cares more about human lives than mages'' lives. Chariot¡­ That name rang a few bells, but she always had taken them as a group of wandering mages that wasn¡¯t harmful. Until now. Irsen Kartal didn¡¯t say anything else about them. She looked down at him. He had arrived a bit earlier, flying on his familiar, and now was seated on the middle seats, drinking and talking to the mage sitting next to him. She looked at the last part of the letter. ¡®The mage your son tried to get rid off, Velvet, seems like an interesting kid. She didn¡¯t murder or take revenge on the humans your son mind controlled to kill her. I¡¯ll be watching her career with interest.¡¯ That was both a threat and a warning. He indirectly told her that he would be taking notice of Velvet¡¯s status, and so, if Adeline or the Graham¡¯s were to take revenge on her, Kartal would take action. As the leader of the Scales of Poine, he was responsible for the eradication of the few mage families that took too many human lives. The Grahams had their share of illegal dealings. One just had to see how Cornelius decided to take action against Iren, so making Kartal notice them even more was not a smart choice. Therefore, she had to leave that kid alone. She was sure some families that were against her family, or just wanted a satisfactory nod from Kartal would select her, since word of the incident had run through everyone already. Irsen Kartal was not doing that for Velvet¡¯s sake either. He used the families that wanted to be in his good books to raise the mages that caught his interest, so that he could recruit them to the Scales of Poine once they graduated. Everyone won something that way. Kartal had a new member raised for free, and the family that selected them had a member on the Scales that was sympathetic towards them. So, there was quite an interest now. Of course, it wasn¡¯t all Irsen Kartal¡¯s work. It had been just a few hours after Kartal returned from the trip, and the news had propagated like wildfire, all courtesy of the Doyles. Carion Doyle, the head of the Doyle family. A corpulent man, dressed in scholar robes and wearing round glasses. Sitting in the lower seats, he was chatting with the mages around him, all of them drinking and eating. He turned his head to look at Adeline when he felt her gaze, but turned around at the moment their eyes met. He is good at playing scaredy rat, but better at making friends. The Doyle family was in decline until he took over, making connections and growing enough for them to become part of the selectors. On the contrary, the Grahams had been losing influence, making enemies and losing allies. Cornelius was supposed to go to Idir and make some connections there, but now even that plan was messed up. She could still send Ethra, Cornelius'' younger brother, and try to mend things. Just when she put down the letter, the Director cleared her throat. She was seated at the highest seat, the absolute authority over the Mergifari. Her word was law. Everyone stopped talking, going back to their seats. The food and drinks disappeared, and the Initiation Room got shrouded in shadows, the only illuminated thing being the stage. The door opened, and the mages that received an invitation entered in order of arrival. The first one was the Second Prince of Idir. Dressed in noble Idirian clothes, long black hair that he kept tied up low, and dark skin, he entered in silence. Normally, novice mages did a demonstration of their abilities to get the attention of potential selectors, but, invitation carriers didn¡¯t need to. ¡°Syon Idrees, Second Prince of Idir.¡± The Director introduced. Her voice was soft, she didn¡¯t need to raise it for everyone to understand. The mages in the stage could pick up the name and title that the Director would call out, as long as it was true. Some could even go anonymous, as long as they weren¡¯t invited. ¡°Invitation or Selection?¡± The mages invited could choose to go with the sender of the invitation, or set themselves up for selection. It was strange for someone with an invitation to pick the latter option, but the choice existed. ¡°Invitation. Irsen Kartal.¡± The one named nodded, not saying anything. Syon walked to the exit at the back, which would take him to the Mergifari. The second invited entered. ¡°Dianthus Cecht Luachra, the Chosen One.¡± Adeline, and everyone else paid attention. They knew the one that invited him was the Queen of Arhontissa, who also raised him and taught him the basics of magic, so it was unanimously known that he would go with her. ¡°I want Selection.¡± He had answered before the Director could ask, making almost every mage gasp. Chapter 25. Spicy fish Even Adeline gasped. The Chosen One, up for Selection? If she managed to get him to her side, all her problems would be gone. Picking up a piece of crystal, she decided to offer up everything for him. ¡­ Winter went through all the stages of grief in a few seconds. Why?! Why do you need to act up right now, Dian?! In front of all the mages, nonetheless! She repressed the desire to wring the chosen one¡¯s neck. Looking in fear at the High Queen seat, just next to the Director¡¯s, she found the queen relaxed, not a sign of anger in her face, even after this public humiliation. Was she expecting this? Winter sighed deeply, calming down. The mages next to her weren¡¯t doing anything, all of them Arhontissian, but the others¡­ They were scribbling on some pieces of crystal, making their offers. Once they found them satisfactory, they tossed the crystal pieces to the mist that was moving on the floor. The pieces disappeared before touching the floor, reappearing on the table in front of the Director. Winter wanted to cry, the crystal mountain becoming larger and larger. One by one, the Director grabbed them, checking that the offers were truthful. Lying at the offer was prohibited. Any offer made to the mage was of obligated compliment. Trying to find loopholes or denying what was written was an offense to the Mergifari¡¯s Director. It seemed that some selectors tried to lie. Winter felt the room emptier, but she couldn¡¯t remember who was seated in the now empty seats, no matter how hard she tried. Their presence was gone. Not even a cry was heard. Winter was sure that they weren¡¯t dead, maybe the Director just sent them home, of course, that depended on the lie. Slowly, not rushing for anyone, not even for Winter¡¯s own sanity, the Director checked the remaining crystals, before waving her hand, making them disappear and appear in front of Dian, arranged in straight lines. Winter saw him flipping the crystals, not bothering with the offers, but with the names of the ones offering. It seemed he didn¡¯t find the one he wanted, a disappointed sigh coming out of him once he was done. ¡°Muirenmaith.¡± Winter sighed in relief when he said the queen¡¯s name. Was she so sure about him not sending an offer? Winter looked down. Sitting in a reclining position, as if he was in his own damn office, at the lowest level possible, was the man Winter was hating the most at this moment. The Embarrassment of the Mergifari, the jobless, shameless, apprenticeless, son of the Director, who never picked any apprentice, even when several nobles gave him offers to be someone useful in society and teach their descendants, Ceres the Unemployed. Why does Dian want him so bad? Winter grimaced. Even the Director was so ashamed of him she put him at the most hidden seat, even when he could be way higher. ¡­ Velvet was almost at Wishbell. Everything had gone relatively fine, except for two things. One, her Esca had opened a bit more. She wasn¡¯t such a joke of a mage anymore, a quarter of Esca opened. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Two¡­ eating a familiar had consequences. Physical consequences. Looking at her face in a mirror, her beautiful, perfect eyes, with pupils round in a pretty, adorable¡­ circular circle, had become a bit¡­ sharp. Like a snake. It wasn¡¯t exactly like a snake, just a bit. But she didn¡¯t like it. Her fangs had also become sharper. Hyde and Baraviodos tried to console her, telling that it was barely noticeable. And they were right. Still, it was noticeable for Velvet. She was a knowledge mage, of course she knew exactly how she looked! ¡°This is fine. It¡¯s not thaaat bad. It does give me a dangerous cutie air, doesn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°...¡± She could just feel the uncomfortable silence of the two demons. ¡°Doesn¡¯t it?¡± She repeated. ¡°I don''t like young people.¡± ¡°I am a spider. You don¡¯t have enough legs.¡± ¡°Wow, the support I¡¯m having. Amazing.¡± Finishing dressing up, she picked this time the good hat that Couger gave her, and Madam Dorna¡¯s clothes. She had to board an airship towards the Mergifari, so she had to look good to her fellow mages! ¡­ The train arrived at Wishbell. Velvet went to take Niko to his family. She had helped him dress up, just like she did with the orphanage kids. He still looked tired and sad, but that was something time would change. Leaving the station, she knew that his family was waiting for him a few streets away, so she took her luggage, going in that direction. A member of the Scales was waiting with Niko¡¯s family. Velvet had seen him before, taking Nathaniel''s corpse and belongings. That saved Velvet from explaining what happened to them. Good. She didn¡¯t like being the one to give the bad news. Niko went running towards them, hugging the one Velvet supposed was his mother. The father nodded at Velvet, as a thanking motion. They were polite, offering Velvet to stay a few days with them, but she refused, not wanting to be in the middle of a grieving family. ¡°Velvet,¡± Niko was bidding farewell to her. ¡°By the next time we see each other, I hope you got the thing you are chasing.¡± ¡°I hope you do too.¡± And so, the two travelers parted ways. ¡­ ¡°Saliman Ramis, Blue Python¡­¡± Velvet mused, walking from place to place. She hoped he was currently at Wishbell, and not flying somewhere. She went to the offices that took care of selling flight tickets, asking for the man. Viroa wouldn¡¯t lie to me. Deciding to stop searching and going to eat breakfast, she went to a fast food stall that said ¡®Paraiso style fish¡¯. ¡­ ¡°It¡¯s so spicy!¡± Velvet cried, drinking from the carton vase the stall owner gave her. ¡°That¡¯s how real Paradisian food tastes!¡± Laughing at her suffering, the man kept on adding spice to the fish he was cooking to another customer. ¡°I-it¡¯s really good, don¡¯t get me wrong¡­ But I¡¯m delicate.¡± Velvet liked honey, not¡­ What did he call this? Chilli? ¡°Haha, this isn¡¯t food for kids!¡± A customer said. ¡°Gin! One of mapo tofu!¡± ¡°Saliman, nice to see you.¡± Velvet choked on her fish, coughing on her napkin. ¡°C¡¯mon girl. If you can¡¯t eat it, you can¡¯t. Stop forcing yourself.¡± The man took a carton filled with that ¡®mapo tofu¡¯, paying Gin and starting to leave. ¡°W-wait wait!¡± Forcing the tears back, Velvet stopped him. ¡°Hm? Need something?¡± ¡°Are you Saliman Ramis?! I came here searching for you!¡± Saliman smiled, ¡°Am I that famous of an adventurer? the last one that wanted to find me was¡­¡± ¡°A child of yours, if I recall. From one of your ¡®adventures¡¯.¡± Gin interrupted, making Saliman¡¯s smile freeze. ¡°Your wife went nuts.¡± Saliman looked at Velvet, who was coughing. She was young, and around the age when he¡­ ¡°For god''s sake!¡± He didn¡¯t name one in specific, so it seemed a ¡®To whom it may concern¡¯ type of complaint. ¡°A-are you Maris daughter?! ¡­ Farin¡¯s? ¡­ Serina?¡± Velvet stopped coughing, taking a sip of water. Then, she looked at Saliman. ¡°Really? Everyone says I have my mother¡¯s eyes¡­ Have you forgotten her already?¡± The poor man froze at the sad voice that Velvet used. ¡°I-I¡¯ll make up to it, I swear!¡± Chapter 26. Pirate Hunter Having played a bit, Velvet ended up telling the truth. ¡°Viroa sends her regards.¡± She lifted the broken pocket watch in her hand, dangling it in front of Saliman. ¡°WHA- You littl- Do you have any ide- Ahhh!¡± He cursed at her a few times, in several languages, while Velvet grinned at him. ¡°Is she even still alive?¡± ¡°Alive and well, you should visit her at Casrey sometime.¡± ¡°I am not doing that.¡± Saliman glared at Gin, who was still laughing at him, hitting the counter and gasping for air. ¡°You just took ten years of my life with that scare.¡± ¡°And you just gave me five. Here, it¡¯s on the house. Not spicy. Well, sweet and a bit spicy, actually.¡± He gave Velvet a container with some roasted octopus. ¡°Oh, thank you Mr. Gin!¡± Ignoring the heavy breathing Saliman, both of them started doing their own thing, Velvet eating and Gin cleaning the counter. ¡°So, what reason does Viroa have to send you?¡± He took the pocket watch, examining it, before sighting and giving it back to her. ¡°I need to take the airship to the Mergifari.¡± ¡°A mage, huh. Lot¡¯s of them are coming these days. How soon do you want to leave?¡± ¡°Soon as possible.¡± ¡°There¡¯s one taking off in a few hours¡­¡± Sighing, he added. ¡°Let me talk to some people first. Do not wander around, if I can¡¯t find you once I¡¯m done, it¡¯s on you.¡± ¡°Oh, take this then.¡± Velvet gave him a paper figurine. ¡°Burn it a bit and I¡¯ll go find you. You smell like cigars, so lighting it should be easy.¡± Sighing, he picked the paper figurine, before waving at Gin and leaving. When he was out of their sight, he smelled his clothes. ¡°Do I really smell like tobacco?¡± ¡­ Velvet spent the morning strolling around. Wishbell, as a place used mostly to take airships and moving tourists from other continents, was full of souvenir shops. Shops a bit overpriced, in Velvet¡¯s humble opinion. There was also a bulletin board with news, some wanted posters, and a world map. It was similar to the one Velvet had seen on Viroa¡¯s ship. The Charlampa Archipelago at the center, surrounded by the ocean. Mirel to the east, Idir to the south and Arhontissa to the northeast. Those were the travellable continents. Then, there was Paraiso in the southeast, Permafrost all the way north and Ilihia all the way to the south. Of the last three continents, only Paraiso was habitable, but its god had made a wall of light surrounding it, making the entrance difficult. Paraiso wanted a place for magic and mythological creatures to live, away from technology. Humans like Gin were ones of the few that decided to leave. One could enter Paraiso, as long as they didn¡¯t bring any ¡®steaming invention¡¯ inside. Permafrost was a frozen land. Some expeditions tried to uncover its secrets, but they barely managed to map the shores. Ilihia was a scorching desert, belonging to Idir the same way Charlampa belonged to Arhontissa. It was a famous spot for adventurers and treasure seekers. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. Oh, there was also the Mergifari, alone in the northwest. It was tiny, compared to the continents. In the end, she ended up getting bored of looking at the board and went to spook Saliman. ¡°I can wait until he lights the figurine, and jump at him at that moment. As if I just transported instantly.¡± ¡°Or you can just act like a decent person, and walk to him.¡± Baraviodos said. ¡°You¡¯re such an old man, not liking pranks. Look at Hyde, he barely speaks in favor or against my choices.¡± ¡°I got used to it.¡± ¡°Well, I don¡¯t have to. Once you find a member of the Doyle family, I¡¯ll be free.¡± ¡°I know I know. Not even gonna miss me a bit?¡± ¡°For Andras¡¯ sake, no.¡± Damn ¡­ ¡°Look, I found Saliman.¡± Ignoring Baraviodos, she ran towards him. ¡°Salimaaaaaan!¡± Flinching, he turned to her. ¡°Did you finish shopping?¡± ¡°Everything is too expensive, so yes.¡± ¡°Alcohol isn¡¯t.¡± He cleared his throat when Velvet just stared at him unblinking and expressionless. ¡°And food.¡± ¡°Did you get the tickets?¡± ¡°Yes, yes. In an hour and half. You¡¯re lucky, it was full, but three people apparently won¡¯t be coming.¡± ¡°Huh, I wonder why.¡± So Siberina did run away for real¡­ ¡°Anyway, with that done, I no longer have any debt to her. Make sure she gets that.¡± ¡°What did you do?¡± Saliman sighed, scratching his head. ¡°Eh, I did get into some problems with a few pirates. You know, the kind that leaves a treasure on some random island and then gets angry when adventurers find it¡­¡± ¡°Long history short, I ended up being hunted by pirates that were being hunted by her in turn.¡± ¡°Oh, so she did heroically save you from them?¡± ¡°No. She killed the pirates, but also was after the treasure. She didn¡¯t like hearing that I had spent it with my associates already¡­¡± ¡°Sounds just like her.¡± Velvet nodded. ¡°But! Since my head didn¡¯t have any bounty, and I was worth the same dead or alive, she just ended up deciding I was indebted to her. Not debatable. ¡± ¡°Sounds just like her.¡± Velvet nodded again. ¡°I really hoped she was dead already, damn.¡± ¡°Cmooon, it¡¯s not like she was that bad.¡± ¡°So you know absolutely nothing, hm?¡± I know that, but hey! ¡°E-du-ca-te me, then.¡± ¡°She was a pirate hunter known as The Shrike. Any pirate ship she got her hands on ended up¡­ ugh, those were different times, times I don¡¯t want to remember. Go to some archive and read some newspapers from forty years ago.¡± ¡°Damn, you¡¯re old.¡± ¡°I was just young back then! And wilder!¡± ¡°Back then.¡± Velvet made sure to enunciate every letter. ¡°Go to the goddam airship already.¡± ¡°See you later! I¡¯ll make sure Viroa sends you a letter sometime!¡± ¡°You better NOT do that.¡± Laughing, Velvet left Saliman Ramis and went towards the airship directed to the Mergifari. ¡­ The airship was high class, Velvet was sure of that. She had seen some other airships while walking there, but this one was magnificent. Not as colossal in size as its siblings, but still very big. It was in perfect state, not even a piece of wood out of place nor a speck of metal rusted. Decorated with golden symbols, it was clearly enhanced with magic. ¡°I''m so glad I¡¯m not paying the ticket¡­¡± No wonder she wanted to take the sea route, the air route definitely was for more well paid mages, nobles or burgeroise. People were boarding already, so Velvet went to do the same. ¡­ The insides were like a palace. Marble floors, beautifully embroidered curtains, waiters carrying trays with drinks and food¡­ There was even an orchestra! The trip was five days long, shorter than the other option. Picking some food and a drink, Velvet searched for a place to sit. ¡°There, there!¡± Baraviodos voice in her head almost scared her. ¡°Where¡­? Did you suddenly go blind? There is someone already sitting there.¡± ¡°I know that. That is Gertine! Gertine Doyle! The Doyles¡¯ selected! Take me to her!¡± Chapter 27. Gertine Gertine Doyle. Upon hearing that name, Velvet paid attention to her. Blond long hair lazily tied up that falled in disarray upon her back, a thick long skirt with various capes in different dark greens that covered all her body except for a few unbuttoned buttons in the chest zone. In her face there were some thin golden rimmed round glasses, and she wore some red lipstick and eye shadow. Immediately, Velvet went and sat in front of her. ¡°Hello~ It is a nice day we are having, isn¡¯t it?¡± Gertine, who was reading a newspaper, lifted her gaze towards Velvet, not moving her head. ¡°Yes. Can I help you?¡± ¡°Yes in fact! I was looking around, and I noticed your fate was changing!¡± Pulling out the Tarot deck, Velvet played a charlatan, ignoring Baraviodos'' long groan in her head. ¡°It seems a great encounter awaits you!¡± ¡°Is that so.¡± ¡°Yes, yes, let me prove it to you.¡± She started mixing the cards under Gertine''s uninterested gaze. She put the deck on the table, before pushing a card forward. ¡°The Hermit.¡± Velvet flipped it. ¡°Usually refers to a teacher or someone with more knowledge than you. Does someone come to mind? Oh! Don¡¯t tell me, don¡¯t tell me, just think about it.¡± ¡°Hm-hm.¡± ¡°Next card¡­¡± She pushed another. ¡°Death. Oh, kinda dark, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°Death usually means transformation, not actual death.¡± She cut Velvet, who curled her lips in response. Well, Iren went from mage to notebook, so I¡¯m right. ¡°Yup, transformation. Too bad there¡¯s no card that means notebook, but alas¡­ But oh, reencounters¡­ eh, the Ten of Pentacles works.¡± She took a card out of the deck, not looking at it, and flipped it. It was the Ten of Pentacles. Gertine smiled, ¡°Kind of a cheat, aren¡¯t you?¡± ¡°But now I have your attention.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t buy anything.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about that, it¡¯s not you who will be paying.¡± Velvet slid her hand upon the cards, making them disappear, then, she flipped it in the same way, making the notebook appear where the Death card was before. ¡°Bars, say hello, no?¡± ¡°Gertine.¡± The demon inside the notebook said. ¡°It¡¯s been a long time.¡± Velvet grinned when the girl flinched in surprise, her fingers dropping the page she was reading. ¡°What¡­? W-wait, how did it happen?¡± ¡°Oh, I can explain.¡± ¡­ After she finished recounting the train trip, Gertine kept silent. It took less time than Niko and Kartal. She didn¡¯t have that many questions, and knew already about mages hunting one another. Velvet found her reaction emotionless. It seemed that her relation towards Iren was a bit cold, even when they were family. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. ¡°He was a distant cousin of mine, and had a knack for traveling most of the time. I barely knew him.¡± ¡°Hm? Weren¡¯t you both going to the Mergifari?¡± Velvet assumed that most mages going to Wishbell, apart from Siberina and Cornelius, were going to the Mergifari. ¡°Yes, but not for the same thing.¡± She tilted her head, it seemed Baraviodos was telling her something. ¡°So you don''t know.¡± Closing the newspaper, she continued. ¡°Before the Mergifari¡¯s official opening date, there¡¯s a¡­ market. No, the market is always open, but the two weeks before the Selection, it becomes a¡­¡± She made an expanding motion with her hands, not finding the word. Both of them kept silent for a few seconds, staring at each other while Gertine kept moving her hands. ¡°A bigger market.¡± Velvet said. ¡°I wanted to use a more specific word¡­ but yes. It¡¯s a way for making the trip worth it, even if one doesn¡¯t manage to enter the Mergifari.¡± ¡°Hm, that¡¯s good to know.¡± Velvet wasn¡¯t sure she could afford anything, but window shopping was free. Gertine picked up the bloody notebook, which didn¡¯t leave a single blood stain on the table. ¡°I¡¯m going to send a message.¡± Gertine got up, dusting off her skirt. ¡°Oh, and¡­?¡± ¡°Velvet.¡± ¡°Velvet, give me your Tarot for a moment.¡± She did that, watching Gertine mix the cards. ¡°Let me do a divination for you. A revelation of your true self.¡± She mixed the cards, before taking one without looking, pushing it towards her without turning it around, before taking Iren¡¯s things and leaving. Velvet smile flinched. ¡°You do have a sense of humor, don¡¯t you?¡± Gertine had left already, before Velvet turned the card around, already knowing which one it was. It was The Fool. ¡°At least it is not The Chariot, I would have cried if it was that one.¡± Velvet kept on drinking and eating. She wasn¡¯t afraid of the Doyles refusing to compensate her, since she had the Devil¡¯s Deal, and Irsen Kartal had seen it. If we are talking about politics¡­ Refusing to compensate me would make them look bad before the Scales boss, which seems like a bad thing. ¡­ Velvet went for a moment to her room to leave her luggage, not wanting to carry it around. The room was great, similar to the one Siberina had in the train. Still, after having spent the last two days inside a train, Velvet wanted to avoid staying in a closed space. So, she went to stroll around the airship. There were a lot of mages, so maybe she could see a bit of the true ¡®Mage Society¡¯. After a while going from one place to another, she more or less had seen all that the airship had to offer, including the mages that traveled inside. Some mages carried familiars around. Not demonic familiars, those ones usually stayed inside their pocket dimension, the risk of becoming a snack present, but elemental, natural and even some enhanced animals could be seen. Velvet saw a horned, six legged wolf walking behind a mage that looked like a student, who was talking to the big blue rat that was being carried in his arms. She also saw a flying snake, who looked directly at her. Can it see that I ate a snake? The snake tilted her head, as if saluting, before going its own way, following a girl with blue hair and delicate appearance. Or am I part snake now? Does it think I¡¯m one of them? Velvet tilted her head back, also going her way. She saw some more mages and familiars, before realizing something. None of them were talking to each other. Some had ¡®groups¡¯, but she could see there was a clear leader on those, the others taking a submissive attitude. She tried to locate mages that were like her, novices, but they hid too well that fact, no one wanting to appear weak. It made sense, Velvet though, after all, she already had problems for being a mage with no family behind. Most lonely mages were young, around her age. Still, if they could afford the airship ticket, taking them as wanderers might be a mistake. So it all leads down to become a pretender¡­ Don¡¯t bring attention to you¡­ I failed that step on the train, haha. Better not fail it again. Gertine probably knew that she was a wanderer, but what is done is done, she will need to have some faith towards the Doyles¡¯ ¡®gratitude¡¯. Velvet looked through the window, towards the starry sky. The orchestra had stopped playing, and now, a pianist was in their place, his music filling the hall. Being so high up, it was a beautiful sight. And yet, no one was dancing. Chapter 28. Helpful and pleasant In the end, Velvet went to sleep. She had some curiosity about her body changes, wanting to see if something in the dream had changed too. Unfortunately, it seemed futile, the dream still the same. ¡°Not even a step closer¡­¡± ¡°You know, I could take a congratulatory gift! Like a stare, or a tremble!¡± ¡°A bit of visibility would be fine too.¡± Nothing, not even her being delirious and imagining something. In the end, the dream went like always. ¡­ Velvet woke up late, stretching herself lazily, not wanting to get out of bed. Of course, she ended up getting ready and leaving the room, going to bother Gertine. It¡¯s not bothering, I want my rewards. She was in the same spot as yesterday, eating breakfast. ¡°A fellow late riser!¡± She sat in front of her, after picking some breakfast. ¡°I had to send a lot of letters.¡± She took a bite of toast, and a sip of some strange smelling coffee. ¡°That coffe¡­¡± ¡°It has Baileys.¡± Velvet grimaced. ¡°How old are you?¡± ¡°Nineteen.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you too young for alcoholism?¡± Gertine didn¡¯t bother answering, cutting a piece of cheese. ¡°Huh, I didn¡¯t see that one in the buffet.¡± ¡°Of course, I brought it here with me.¡± Velvet noticed the cheese had some charms around it, probably so that the smell didn¡¯t stick to Gertine¡¯s clothes. ¡°Is it that good?¡± Gertine cut a piece, offering it to Velvet, who ate it. ¡°Oh! It¡¯s good!¡± ¡°My family has a cheese factory.¡± ¡°As in¡­ the Doyles?¡± Gertine nodded, before changing the theme. ¡°I have your rewards here.¡± She put two books and an envelope in front of her. One book was bigger than the other. ¡°Knowledge spells here, lust spells here.¡± She pointed at the big book and thin book. ¡°The envelope has 1000 auris.¡± A thousand?! Velvet had to use all her willpower to not scream. Dammit, isn¡¯t murder a bit too lucrative? ¡°Huh, didn¡¯t Baraviodos say that you couldn''t afford more than one Selected? How much does it cost to enter someone?¡± She was curious about that for a while. ¡°Each selector can pick one mage for free. An extra apprentice cost a hundred thousand auris.¡± Velvet froze at that, not even knowing what to say. So she changed the theme after drinking a bit of her own, non alcoholic coffee. ¡°Do you just carry that much money around?¡± She picked the three things, putting the envelope in the hidden pocket of her dress. ¡°No, my mother just sent it to me.¡± If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°How?¡± She saw Gertine lifting her eyes to look at her through her glasses. ¡°Making a contract with a fae.¡± ¡°Teach me how to do that.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you just get rewarded?¡± ¡°Cmon, we are stuck here for four days more. There¡¯s nothing else to do, and we can become friends!¡± Gertine was going to refuse, not really interested in Velvet, but, if there was something the Doyle¡¯s head always said was: ¡®Keep on making connections, especially if they can connect you to someone else!¡¯. Velvet wasn¡¯t important per se, but she had spoken to Irsen Kartal, and it seemed they didn¡¯t have a bad relationship. That was verified by Baraviodos. The demon was no longer with her, having been sent to her mother. But he did make some emphasis on that. And Irsen Kartal might not be a noble, but he was the Scales of Poine leader. So he was expecting Velvet to want to become my ¡®friend¡¯. Alright. She wasn¡¯t the Doyle¡¯s selected for nothing, understanding what they wanted from her in a moment. ¡°Okay.¡± She said, after making a short pause on purpose. ¡°But you¡¯d better not be causing problems.¡± ¡°You will discover that I am but a perfectly behaved student.¡± ¡­ When they finished eating, they went to Gertine¡¯s room. ¡°Take out anything made of iron that you¡¯re carrying in your body. You can leave it in the bathroom. Also, I would tell you a few things you can do and a few you can¡¯t. Non negotiables.¡± ¡°You have aaall my attention.¡± Velvet went to take off a few things, her boots included. She took off any metal in her person, just in case. When she came out of the bathroom, Gertine had cleaned the center of the room, and was making a circle out of tiny bells. ¡°Faes like the sound of small bells,¡± She explained. ¡°Small. Remember that. No bigger than a nail. Jingle bells work too. Also, don¡¯t call them anything else from faes, faeries or fairies. Unless they told you so.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Fae includes a long array of beings. From a fenodyree to a pixie, to a gnome, to a banshee, to a boggart¡­ All of them are ¡®fae¡¯, but call an Aes S¨ªdhe a vila, and you¡¯re going to have a very offended, very powerful being.¡± Velvet nodded. ¡°Don¡¯t give them your name. That one is already known, but important nonetheless.¡± ¡°They are not humans, nor feel like humans, even if they look like humans.¡± ¡°Meaning¡­?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t sleep with them. Even if they seem interested. They get jealous very, very easily, and, unless you¡¯re planning on living the rest of your life, if you don¡¯t end up dead, closed somewhere in the Fae Realm, you will listen to me.¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t planning on doing that!¡± ¡°Faes can¡¯t lie, but they can find loopholes in words. Double, no, triple check anything they say.¡± ¡°Summoning a fairy isn¡¯t like summoning demons. With demons, you bring their Realm to your location, and they don¡¯t really do anything about it, but fairies don¡¯t like being ordered. At all. Summoning them is like lighting a fire in the dark, if they feel interested, they will come on their own.¡± ¡°And if they don¡¯t?¡± ¡°Then maybe the ones that saw the fire are not interested in you, or the location is wrong, or the air is too humid. Just wait a few days, change the summoning place or change the incantation.¡± ¡°What incantations do you have?¡± ¡°None I can give you. The messenger fae we have contracted is private. Giving you the name could endanger us. Just think about what you need. Someone that can repair clothes, someone that can send letters with frequency¡­¡± Velvet didn¡¯t need anything at this moment, but she wanted to see how the summoning worked. ¡°I can write a few letters in a moment, just give me a moment¡­¡± Gertine waited for Velvet to write them. She saw her making envelopes and putting some things inside apart from the letters. ¡°Alright, done.¡± ¡°Good. A faerie chant needs a few things. One, it has to be specific. In your case ¡®A helpful and pleasant, non Lothrigern faerie that can safely take these envelopes to¡­¡¯ whoever you need. Be specific, for example, take this envelope to John Doe that lives on Wishbell at Daly Street door number 8. If he isn¡¯t home, leave the envelope on the kitchen table.¡± ¡°What if I don¡¯t use the pleasant part? What is Lothrigern?¡± ¡°Faes can do very mean pranks. It¡¯s not like they will try to murder you on the spot, but better safe than sorry. Lothrigern is to faeries what Andras Apolyon is to demons.¡± ¡°But you invite Andras when you summon demons, here, you are excluding Lothrigern.¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± Both of them kept silent for a few seconds. ¡°Well, tell me why.¡± ¡°You cannot summon Andras, just call for His attention, but there is a chance to call Lothrigern to your position. It is not recommendable.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°You can¡¯t be in their presence. Either you lose control on the spot, or their aura shapes you into something. I know of a few mages that became trees or melted on the spot.¡± Gertine almost flinched when Velvet suddenly turned to her, a strange look in her face. Then, she turned back to face the circle once again, as if nothing had happened. ¡°So,¡± She said, ¡°A helpful and pleasant, non Lothrigern faerie that can safely deliver these envelopes to Madam Dorna, in Casrey¡¯s orphanage, returning them to me if they can¡¯t find her.¡± Chapter 29. Letters Gertine went over her words. ¡°Seems good. We can try that.¡± ¡°You need to apply some magic on these bells, making them sound. Then, recite that chant. Remember, you are calling for someone that moves between worlds.¡± So she¡¯s letting me do it on my own, nice. Velvet stood outside the bell circle, applying some magic. The bells seemed made for that, starting to jingle. ¡°These are good, where do you get them?¡± ¡°You can buy some at the Mergifari. Focus.¡± The summoning was a bit similar to the demonic one. ¡°From the center¡­ to between.¡± ¡°From the earthbound¡­to the fae that travels unbounded.¡± ¡°I¡¯m Velvet Consestella Dobastro, and I call for a helpful and pleasant, non Lothrigern faerie that can safely deliver this envelope to Madam Dorna, in Casrey¡¯s orphanage, returning it to me if they can¡¯t find her.¡± She was going to try with just one. The bells kept on making that pleasant jingle. After a few seconds, the space in the middle of the circle twisted, letting someone out. It¡­ looked exactly like a bear, Velvet thought. Brown, hairy and big, standing on two legs. ¡°Hi.¡± Said Velvet. The bear nodded, as if he was also saluting her, but kept looking towards the envelope in her hands. Do I just give it to him? ¡°You heard what I said? I need to deliver this envelope to Madam Dorna, on Casrey.¡± The bear nodded again, so Velvet gave him the envelope. He grabbed it and disappeared. Velvet turned to Gertine, and she gave the signal to end the summoning, so Velvet stopped giving magic to the bells. ¡°Now what?¡± ¡°The fairy will deliver it, and then he will come back. You¡¯re not supposed to thank them, but gifting them something is okay. Remember, it''s a gift, not a payment.¡± ¡°What do they like?¡± ¡°Milk, sweets, children¡¯s toys made of wood¡­¡± ¡°You talked about having a contract with them, how do I do that?¡± Aren¡¯t you asking too many questions? It isn¡¯t free, you know?! Gertine¡¯s mouth twitched imperceptibly. ¡°First, you need to be friends with one. That takes time, but once a faerie is interested in you, some type of deal can be made. Some are more friendly than others, but don¡¯t forget they are wild.¡± ¡°Got it, so I need to go find a gift¡­¡± Velvet went to the bathroom, picking up and putting her things back. ¡°Then I¡¯m leaving you now! Thanks Gertie!¡± Velvet left, leaving Gertine alone in her room, who sighed, taking out a flask with liquor and drinking a bit. ¡°Building relationships is too draining¡­¡± ¡­ Velvet went back to her room after picking a few things. She had finished the gift a few seconds before the bear fairy came back, with an envelope. Velvet flinched, if he couldn¡¯t find Madam Dorna in Casrey, maybe she was¡­ It wasn¡¯t the same envelope, she realized. ¡°Oof, you scared me, is that for me?¡± The bear nodded, giving her the new envelope, and waiting. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. He is looking at my pocket, where I have the other letters¡­ Does he like delivering that much? ¡°I have some other letters I want to deliver,¡± She confirmed. ¡°But I need to check them first. Oh! I made some roasted goat cheese and honey canap¨¦s, feel free to eat them.¡± Like that, it wasn¡¯t a payment, it was a gift, a tasty and easy to make gift. While the bear ate, she finished the other envelopes. ¡°This one is for Viroa, she is on a ship called The Algae, on the Whispering Sea. Can you deliver this envelope safely to her?¡± The bear nodded. Velvet asked about the other envelopes, giving them to him after confirming that he would deliver them. ¡­ Casrey, in the orphanage director¡¯s room. Madam Dorna slid her fingers through the page, reading it again. She had taught Velvet Braille when she was younger, so they had no problems communicating with letters. Dorna had even written an answer, making whoever brought that card wait for a bit. They were so silent, only grunting¡­ Velvet, what kinda friends are you making? Still, she offered the sender some tea to ease the wait, and it seemed they accepted, the cup now empty. The letter read: Madam Dorna, it¡¯s me, your favorite kid, Velvet! I¡¯m good, and had zero problems arriving. Well, only having to change routes, but I¡¯m fine. I¡¯m sending you 20 auris. Fix the roof and the pipes. Use the change for whatever breaks. Fix the pipes, Dorna. I also put several charms to make water drinkable. Use the charms, Dorna. At this point she had to sigh. Velvet¡¯s way of writing was¡­ Something she didn¡¯t teach her! I may send more letters soon. With love, your best kid. Velvet Consestella Dobastro. Madam Dorna put the letter down, taking a sip from her cold tea. ¡­ Whispering Sea, The Algae captain¡¯s room. After the initial fright caused by a bear coming out of nowhere, who threw the letter at her and disappeared before getting shot, Viroa was reading the contents. Shrike, I found you. She squinted upon reading that, gripping the page. Just kidding, it¡¯s me, Velvet. So, Viroa, I killed a man. Put a gun behind his head, now he¡¯s dead. Viroa cursed in a low voice. That damn kid managed to scare her twice! Well, I killed two, but one was dead already. I also found Saliman Ramis without problems. I didn¡¯t know you were such a pirate hunter! Really, he was terrified! Oh, also, I have the gun I used to kill that guy, but I have no bullets, and it seems guns are forbidden at the Mergifari. Swords aren¡¯t. So you¡¯ve probably seen the revolver in the envelope. I don¡¯t need it, and the owners didn¡¯t ask for me to give it back, hahaha! I want you to sell it, you know several guys that like guns, so fetch me a good price. You can take a 10% commission! Give the money to Madam Dorna. PS: I haven¡¯t found anything about that Valdimari guy. PS2: Oh, I could have put the pocket watch inside the envelope, giving it back to you, but I closed it already!!! So sorry!!! Viroa¡¯s mouth twitched. ¡°This damned brat.¡± Your youngest talent, Velvet. She looked at the revolver in her table, leaving it there for the moment. ¡­ Casrey¡¯s orphanage, again. Celia and Couger, who had a free day, looked at the stack of charms that arrived. The letter said: Hello, it¡¯s Velvet. I don¡¯t know how you¡¯re faring against our enemies, so I¡¯m sending reinforcements. Use those charms to your own discretion. Couger, I¡¯m sure you¡¯re doing great, I¡¯m proud of you. Celia, I know you aren¡¯t eating your veggies. Did you see the bear that delivered that letter? If you keep not eating your greens, I¡¯m sending the Cauliflower Man to make you eat them. Do not test the Cauliflower Man. Your big sister, Velvet. Couger watched Celia¡¯s face grimace. ¡°The cauliflower man is not real, right?¡± ¡°Well,¡± Couger started, ¡°She did send a bear.¡± Celia whined. ¡°Even when she is not here, she keeps on bullying me!¡± ¡°But you should eat your veggies¡­ Velvet is right on that¡­¡± ¡°Shut up. One day I¡¯ll get magic and will take my revenge on her! I will become the strongest mage ever!¡± Couger didn¡¯t know how to answer that, staring at her in silence. ¡°I''m sure the strongest mage isn¡¯t afraid of vegetables.¡± ¡°Shut up!¡± Chapter 30. Reaching infinity Velvet looked at the envelope Madam Dorna sent back. She had put only 20 auris inside to not arouse suspicion from her. ¡°If I sent a hundred, she might just become paranoid and refuse to use it¡­ But 20 should be fine, and it¡¯s enough for a while.¡± Opening the envelope, a letter awaited her. Velvet, you should save the money for your expenses. Still, the pipes will be fixed, don¡¯t worry about that. She still had the remaining 980 auris, so Madam Dorna¡¯s worries were of no concern... She couldn¡¯t tell her that, though. Everything is fine here. Be well. Dorna. ¡°That¡¯s good.¡± Velvet said. Then, she went to bed. It was still day, but there was something she wanted to try. ¡­ The dream was dark, but Velvet expected that. Looking towards the chained man, she tried to speak. ¡°Lothrigern.¡± Nothing happened. Well, she still had the other name. ¡°Andras Apolyon.¡± The chained man shook. Then, everything went red. ¡­ Velvet woke up in pain, as if she had been sliced in pieces. Rolling out of the bed, her vision was tinted red. She touched her face, feeling blood coming out of her eyes. ¡°What did you do?!¡± She heard Hyde screaming in her head. ¡°You¡¯re on the verge of losing control!¡± Between the blood in her eyes, she could see her skin breaking up and unfurling, as if turning into the pages of a book fluttering in a hurricane. Velvet pressed with her fingers the pages that were turning around in her face, ¡®closing¡¯ it, taking deep breaths. With the other hand, she picked one of the empty bottles that she used to carry the ink for the charms, making the dripping blood fall inside. ¡°She is speaking¡­¡± She tried to ignore the new voice in her head. Half her face and body had become paper-like, and the blood coming out of her eyes felt like ink. ¡°Get out of the hat and bring me papers.¡± She used the Apathy part of her Paradigm to block the memories of the dream, breathing steadily to stop the loss of control. Hyde put a few blank pages in front of her, asking about what the hell she did. ¡°I mentioned Andras name in the dream, then, everything went to metaphorical hell.¡± Talking over Her voice, she felt the ¡®pages¡¯ slowly going back to becoming her skin and meat, closing in on themselves. She let out a breath. Her voice stopped. Hyde stopped panicking, now interested. Still, he waited for Velvet to recover control. The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. The blood that had fallen out of her eyes seemed to swirl inside the bottle, changing from red to dark blue with star-like specks. It was a high quality magic material, so Velvet didn¡¯t want to waste it. The ¡®pages¡¯ that her skin had become also were good material, but ripping them would rip Velvet¡¯s own skin, so, unlike the already spilled blood, that shouldn¡¯t be touched. Feeling her body going back to normal, she let out a sudden laugh. ¡°I did it! The first step! He looked at me! Hahahaha!¡± ¡°Are you insane? You almost had a full breakdown!¡± ¡°Ah.¡± Using some magic to put the blood that spilled out inside the bottle, she started rummaging through her suitcase. ¡°Yes, yes, I blocked those¡­¡± The thing that she saw before waking up, the red light. It wasn¡¯t a flash, it was just something reacting and becoming visible. She barely looked at a part of it before it became impossible. But she was a knowledge mage. She never forgets. That part she managed to see, she remembered it fully. But, were she to unblock these memories, she would lose control again. So, she picked some non magical ink, grabbing a paper of the ones Hyde brought, and, piece by piece, slowly unblocking a small part of the already small memory, before blocking it again and doing the same to another, she drew in different pages, sometimes drawing them in reverse, or only the vertical lines in one page, the horizontal in other and the curves in another, stopping every time she felt one page was getting too intense, until she managed to map what she saw. Once she was done, she let her body flop on the floor, too drained of energy to even climb to the bed. At least there is a fancy carpet under me. She mocked, thinking about what she had seen. A part of a magic formation. A magic formation that responded to the use of the name Andras Apolyon. If she had to guess, she would suppose it was a sealing formation, at the minimum, made to keep the chained man in place. It was a very powerful formation, just taking a glimpse of it almost killed her. So, she was sure it was made by the Father of Hell. The symbols that made it were unknown to Velvet, not recognizing any of them, not even some similar ones. ¡°Hyde, do you know any?¡± ¡°No. It¡¯s¡­ very high class. But you can break them down in simpler spells. They can be usable that way.¡± As a knowledge demon, Hyde had grown over the initial scare, now also wanting that juicy, juicy information. He even picked an empty page on his own, doing his best to break them into usable sigils. ¡°This one, it looks like a complete one, but we can break it down into five separate seals, like this¡­¡± He drew five different symbols. ¡°I don¡¯t know what they do. We may need someone to try them.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Velvet grinned at him. ¡°Baraviodos would cry about it. You really are a demon, aren¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Lust demons are too emotional. Knowledge demons are only interested in the discovery of unknown things.¡± Velvet felt Hyde¡¯s greedy, eight eyed gaze upon the pages. Well, that worked great for her. A cooperative demon worked better than an uninterested one. ¡°This one¡­ It seems like it''s done halfway¡­ Did you try other names?¡± ¡°The fairy one Gertine gave me, but it didn¡¯t do anything.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure some other names from Them may cause a reaction.¡± ¡°Do you even know any other name?¡± ¡°No.¡± Both of them kept a few seconds of silence, before going back to the previous theme. ¡°Causing trouble in the airship is not a good idea, and it also can make us targets of revenge.¡± Velvet said. ¡°I don¡¯t know what the Mergifari¡¯s Big Market has to offer, but maybe opportunity arises.¡± She wasn¡¯t planning on asking Gertine for help. She never told Irsen Kartal nor Baraviodos about her dreams, only Hyde and Madam Dorna knowing about them. The reason was simple, even if she didn¡¯t know what it was, maybe others did, and that could go wrong very, very fast. So she preferred to take baby steps on her journey, and not get in a mess because she confided in the wrong person. ¡°Hyde, this is our first step. We are a million times further than before.¡± ¡°I wouldn''t say a million, if that¡¯s a full formation made from Him, it¡¯s not even a one percent.¡± ¡°How much is a million multiplied by zero?¡± Hyde did not answer. ¡°See? I¡¯m right. We were at zero before. So, if we are now at one, or at zero point zero zero zero one, we are still a million times further away from before. Or a billion.¡± ¡°We have reached infinity today Hyde!¡± ¡°You¡¯re making it sound way bigger than it is.¡± ¡°Hyde. How much is infinite multiplied by zero?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Answer me Hyde. Spiders don¡¯t play dead.¡± ¡°Demon spiders do.¡± Chapter 31. Water After they cheered for a few minutes, or, at least Velvet, they put up to work. Velvet rested for a bit, recovering from drawing those symbols, while Hyde broke them down. Then, Hyde rested for a bit, and Velvet started reading the books that Gertine gave her. Lust magic dealt with emotions, and ways to manipulate them. It was also the one with more affinity for plant magic. Remembering Baraviodos¡¯ root-like appearance, it was expected. The spells ranged from some truth charms, to some plant fertilizers, to some for¡­ private activities. There was even a charm to transfer someone¡¯s voice! The truth ones were good; still, the difference in paradigms might make them a bit unusable against others mages. The plant ones could be sold in villages, were she to travel. Also, they were useful to keep Sinoe¡¯s Baslard well fed. The sexual ones, well, also good for selling! Now, to the knowledge book. Baraviodos had kind of cheated her with those. She knew most of them already, which, since they had been traveling together for a while, was very obviously on purpose. He had put the damned exploding paper figurines in the first page! It WAS on purpose. Think of the thousand auris Velvet¡­ They were worth it¡­ ¡°Well, and the idea of using Their names on the dream also was because of them, so I can forgive it a bit¡­¡± She said in a low voice, not forgiving at all. ¡°So shameless, I almost died there!¡± ¡°If we meet again, I''ll eat him!¡± ¡°You will grow roots then.¡± Hyde weakly dissuaded. ¡°I¡¯m no longer eating him. But I will have my revenge.¡± The things she ended up learning from the knowledge book were less than the lust book. ¡°He added variables and Ifs¡­¡± It wasn¡¯t fully useless, since two spells were actually good. One of them was called ''Same as Puppet''. Using someone''s blood, hair or nails, the magician could make a paper puppet connected to the material¡¯s donor, becoming able to hurt them at a distance. The paper puppet cost three paper dolls, but it was useful if she managed to get the materials needed to form a connection. The other was called ''I know what you don''t''. This one was great for Velvet at this moment. It allowed the mage to cover a spell, preventing it from being copied or stolen, as long as the enemy didn''t know about it beforehand. She wanted to use it on the symbols that came from the dream. She still needed to try them. After all, her Esca was only opened a quarter, and using spells over her level might fasten the miasma accumulation. Her almost loss of control had made it accumulate quite a bit. Still, she wanted to wait for a few days until she could purify herself. The damage Cornelius did to her hand hadn¡¯t healed yet, but Irsen Kartal did put some medicine on it, telling her that in three days or so it would be healed. Day two until being healed was almost done, so she could wait. Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. Velvet picked the bottle filled with her corrupted blood. The dark blue liquid seemed alive, swirling on its own, with some golden specks that, looking closer, formed and deformed letters and symbols. What if she were to do a charm with that blood and the dream sigils? Well, first she wanted to do them with the normal ink that she had made with herbs. But the difference was notable. Her ink had very low magic quality, and it needed magic to be applied before making a charm. The results were low quality charms. Corrupted blood, on the other hand¡­ It was no longer blood, becoming water from the Primeval Sea. Velvet would barely need to apply magic to activate it, which¡­ was a problem. It meant that she couldn¡¯t keep the charms stored for more than one hour, or they would go off on their own. Unless she obtained a spell to keep them still, which usually were from the Sloth Paradigm, the charms made with Primeval Sea water should be done before a conflict. Maybe she could find some other use for it that wasn''t charms. ¡°...¡± ¡°Hyde, what happens if I draw strengthening sigils on the paper figurines with this?¡± The spider turned to look at her. He still hadn¡¯t gone back to his pocket dimension, too immersed in the drawings. ¡°They might become influenced by the Primeval Sea, and get stronger for a bit¡­ Add it to the things we have to try.¡± ¡°Mmm¡­ the list thickens.¡± Velvet put the bottle back in her suitcase. ¡°How are you going?¡± ¡°Some of them are repetitions with variations. If, IF,¡± He reiterated. ¡°This is a sealing formation, it makes sense to have repeating parts. Like wrapping something in capes.¡± ¡°Onion Formation.¡± ¡°More or less. As I said, you only mapped a very small part of Andras¡¯ magic formation. We don¡¯t know what the Others might have done. We can even be mistaken, and He didn¡¯t take part in the sealing, but in another thing. Once we try some of these sigils, we may have some answers.¡± ¡°Once you get healed and purified, we should start making experiments and conjectures.¡± ¡°My, didn¡¯t you get pushy and talkative all of sudden? Did seeing your daddy¡¯s magic get you acting unwise?¡± Hyde didn¡¯t feel offended nor ashamed. ¡°I am a Demon of Knowledge. It¡¯s good you didn¡¯t get one from a higher rank, or they might have lost their minds seeing this. Only Ars Chryses should have knowledge about something like this.¡± The hell do you mean you didn¡¯t lose your mind? You look like a crazy scientist, moving so many legs over the papers¡­ Velvet remembered that name, it was the devil that ruled over the piece of hell where Hyde lived. ¡°Mm¡­ You¡¯re not gonna open my head while I sleep, right? Don¡¯t kill the chicken that lays the golden eggs and all that.¡± ¡°Your brain is normal, I did check it the first time you asked me about the dream. Whatever your connection to that place is, it can¡¯t be seen or felt for anyone.¡± Velvet thought about that time, when she looked towards the man in the mountain. If her brain wasn¡¯t, what about her eyes? She asked Hyde that. Hyde looked straight to Velvet. Velvet looked straight to Hyde. They looked at each other for a minute. ¡°I don¡¯t feel anything.¡± ¡°Do you think a higher rank demon or a devil might see something?¡± ¡°Not really, we demons don¡¯t see the world like humans do, and corruption, curses, blessings, sickness and other things are easy to notice for us.¡± Well, there were tales of demons making unfair deals because they knew when a person was filled with despair, or had an incurable illness. They were kind of opportunists. ¡°If your dream is connected to Them,¡± Hyde continued. ¡°Only Them might notice something.¡± Velvet thought about the possibility of calling Lothrigern to her position. But His name didn¡¯t do anything in the dream. Still, she didn¡¯t know if it was because He didn¡¯t care about sealing the chained man, or if He was against it, or if He was in favor, but was either occupied with something else, or wasn¡¯t needed. Velvet wasn¡¯t suicidal, so she wasn¡¯t going to even try. ¡°How many symbols did you get?¡± ¡°Some are too high level for you, but there¡¯s two that you can use and I want to try first.¡± Chapter 32. Framed Velvet spent the rest of the day and the night in the room, resting. She even used one of these new fancy things called ¡®Telephone¡¯. It was like a wooden stick, with two iron disks in the extremes, with one having some sort of expanded tube, like a trumpet. A cable that got lost in the walls connected Velvet to the staff, so that she could ask for anything she needed. That''s how she ended up getting food and some bath salts. And now she was inside a bath filled with bubbles to the rim, eating from some plate filled with an array of chopped fruits with a long and thin fork. There was also a long cup filled with some non-alcoholic beverage. ¡°I sooo deserve this.¡± ¡°Hyde look, this one looks like a star!¡± She lifted a piece of orange fruit. Hyde had finished breaking down the formation part, and now had gone back to the hat. ¡°You only want me for my cursed dreams!¡± She fakely weeped when the spider didn¡¯t answer her. ¡°That¡¯s a persimmon.¡± ¡°What a fancy name, I like you, persimmon!¡± ¡­ Gertine was dealing with some inner turmoil. Velvet hadn¡¯t contacted her after the fae stuff. Did she mess around and got killed? She couldn¡¯t be that dumb, right? No, if she had survived that train thing, she wasn¡¯t THAT dumb. Did Gertine guess wrong? Velvet wasn¡¯t interested in becoming her friend, only using her for some extra benefits? She didn¡¯t think so, breaking the connection to the only magician family that she knew was even dumber. Then she had probably messed up some of the spells Baraviodos gave her. Maybe she had gotten too immersed in them, that was the more possible answer. A part of her wanted to go to Velvet¡¯s room and check, but they weren¡¯t close enough to do that. Velvet was the one supposed to take steps to get closer to her, not the opposite! ¡°We can wait until tomorrow.¡± Her familiar, Vouloire, said to her. ¡°You¡¯re right. Maybe she wants to try to be mysterious.¡± Taking a sip from her glass of rum, she went to focus on other things. The day and night passed like that. ¡°She is still not coming for breakfast¡­¡± Gertine complained, before seeing Velvet going through the buffet, her eyes shining with interest towards the food. Gertine made no motion for her to come and sit down, waiting for her to do it on her own. After Velvet decided to stop walking laps around the buffet! ¡°Gertine, you are rattling your fingers on the table. You can¡¯t look anxious!¡± Vouloire said. She stopped, choosing to drink instead. ¡°Who needs so much time to pick breakfast?!¡± But Vouloire was right. She needed to act wise and patient, like a mage from a family should look. Even then¡­ Stop looking at the fruit¡­ You don¡¯t need a whole mango! ¡­ ¡°Hmm¡­ I can¡¯t find the persimmon¡­ But this one looks close enough.¡± Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. ¡°Maybe you ate them all already. That¡¯s a mango, they don¡¯t even taste similar.¡± ¡°I said look, not taste. Anyway, it¡¯s mine now.¡± She also picked some orange juice, bread, fried eggs and bacon. She then went to sit in front of Gertine, who was busy reading the newspaper. ¡°Hello~¡± Velvet started. ¡°What a nice day we are having. The skies are clear, the orchestra is playing beautiful music, the food is smelling grea-¡± ¡°Alrai! You rotten, pig-brained imbecile!¡± ¡°Aaand the kids are fighting.¡± She wasn¡¯t expecting a mage fight to break down while they were inside an airship, on the air. Emphasis on those two points. Are they stupid? Both Velvet and Gertine thought. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you back up those claims? I am innocent.¡± Velvet looked at the two stupid ass mages. One was the guy with curly hair and the wolf that she saw yesterday. The other was a guy with long hair tied in a thin braid. And Velvet knew him. Not from her memories, of course, but from Siberina¡¯s familiar. Alrai Siberetti. The Siberetti¡¯s selected. ¡°You put a poisoned apple on the buffet, knowing I was going to pick it!¡± Obviously, he was a gambler, so doing that was possible. Velvet agreed with the wolf guy, even without knowing him. The wolf next to the guy growled, threatening Alrai.. ¡°Again, you have no proof.¡± ¡°Fuck your proof, I¡¯m gonna rip your throat out, I only need your brain for checking the truth!¡± Please do it, I don¡¯t want to deal with another Ropperti. Velvet knew she wasn¡¯t being impartial, but hey, she wasn¡¯t a judge! ¡°Do you crave having a brain so badly? You should start by growing a few brain cells first.¡± Alrai provoked him even more. Still, Velvet saw him reaching for the knife next to him, slipping it under the sleeves in a way the other guy couldn¡¯t see. Velvet looked at Gertine, but she just shrugged slightly her shoulders. The wolf guy curled his fingers, hair and claws growing in his hand, but, before he lunged himself at Alrai, someone interrupted, grabbing him by the shoulder. ¡°Nereus. Fighting is prohibited here.¡± Velvet saw the new guy mutter something to the other guy. It seemed something like . Arhontissians? Those were the only ones with a queen. ¡°Igern! He poisoned Mars!¡± Velvet guessed that was the blue rat¡¯s name, since it wasn¡¯t here. The Igern guy seemed to have some magical creature ancestry, since his ears were pointy. He also had some long black hair and green eyes. ¡°I am being framed. If you stopped to think for one or two seconds, not that you can think.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t tolerate insults towards Arhontissian mages.¡± Igern interrupted him, to which Alrai shrugged. ¡°How do you know it was him?¡± ¡°Ethra Graham told me.¡± Velvet choked on the mango piece she was eating. It seemed even Igern was surprised¡­ not as much as offended, his eyebrows frowning before he could stop them. Are you stupid?! Both of them thought, for different reasons. Letting yourself be used like a muscle brained idiot for a Graham! You¡¯re picked by the queen, you cannot do this! Other mages are looking at us! Igern thought, the hand that was holding Nereus shoulder tightening. Aren¡¯t you from magic families?! You¡¯re supposed to have some inside info for things like this! Also, who believes some guy without proof! Oh, maybe he used pride magic¡­ Velvet thought, trying to get the mango piece out without coughing too hard. Gertine patted her back softly. Igern turned towards another mage. ¡°Do you have anything to say?¡± The mage, Velvet recognized that blonde hair and red eyes combination very well, said with disdain. ¡°Why? I just guessed, it''s your dog¡­ and your dog¡¯s dog fault for jumping straight to murder.¡± ¡°He is right about that.¡± Alrai said. He is right about that. Velvet echoed in her mind, before adding. You idiot, why are you agreeing?! Being ganged up by the two mages, Igern flinched a bit. ¡°You could¡¯ve used magic to convince him.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you also jumping to conclusions now?¡± Ethra said. ¡°Didn¡¯t you learn anything?¡± ¡°Someone poisoned my familiar.¡± Nereus repeated. ¡°If it wasn¡¯t you, then who-¡± ¡°Well, someone did take too much time picking fruits.¡± Ethra interrupted him. ¡°That mage over there. I guess it was her.¡± He had just pointed at Velvet. Just when I got the mango out¡­ Chapter 33. Good side Feeling the attention on her, especially Nereus¡¯, Velvet went back to eating. ¡°You! Don¡¯t just ignore me!¡± Nereus tried to go towards her, but Igern¡¯s hold went even tighter. At least he isn¡¯t an idiot¡­ Velvet continued eating, waiting for Nereus to stop struggling. ¡°Miss.¡± Now it was Igern¡¯s turn. ¡°You could at least say you¡¯re being framed.¡± ¡°Oh? But I like the attention¡­¡± She saw Igern¡¯s eyebrow twitch. ¡°Okay, okay!¡± Then, she got up, dusted off her dress and climbed up the chair. And up the table. ¡°You don¡¯t need to do that.¡± ¡°Shh¡­ let me explain. Can I have the spotlight? You don¡¯t have one? Oh, okay¡­ Can you dim the lights? A bit more¡­ Yes, perfect, thank you kindly.¡± ¡°Ejem. My distinguished comrades, animals with feathers, animals with fur and animals with scales¡­ I am innocent! Thank you for coming.¡± She got down, sitting again. And feeling Igern¡¯s penetrating gaze on her, almost making her sweat. Still, some mages did clap, Alrai included, mocking the situation. There was always a bit of tension between Arhontissians and Charlampians, after all, the only reason the Charlampa Archipelago ended up under Arhontissia¡¯s rule was because they won the war, killing Charlampa¡¯s god in the process. So the fact that an Arhontissian mage entered with a ¡®better than you¡¯ attitude did rub too many other mages the wrong way. I hate Charlampian mages¡­ Using all his willpower, he pressed her a bit. ¡°Can you add some type of proof that you¡¯re not the poisoner?¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you also jumping to conclusions now?¡± Velvet quoted Ethra. ¡°Didn¡¯t you learn anything?¡± ¡°She is right about that.¡± Alrai quoted himself. Gertine wanted to strangle Velvet right now. And so did Igern. ¡°Oh, of course.¡± Velvet then said. ¡°But I can guess who poisoned the apple.¡± Before Igern could stop Nereus, he opened his mouth. ¡°Then what are you waiting for?!¡± ¡°I¡¯m on it, I¡¯m on it¡­ What do you know about the Graham¡¯s abilities? Pride Paradigm, can give orders to people as long as they hear him?¡± ¡°He just told someone on the staff to put a poisoned apple there.¡± ¡°But I didn¡¯t order him to grab it.¡± Ethra said. ¡°That one, Gambling Paradigm.¡± She pointed to Alrai. ¡°He has a fifty-fifty chance to make things go his way.¡± ¡°So, did I win that gamble?¡± Alrai said. ¡°Nuh uh, because your poison apple was for me.¡± They wouldn¡¯t have mentioned her otherwise. ¡°So I guess I¡¯m a bit responsible for your rat¡¯s poisoning. Sorry, it was cute.¡± Gambling spells were a bit twisted. If they managed to win, the dumbest coincidences could happen, but losing may have the worst coincidences happen instead. Looking at Nereus, his angry wolf, and Igern, she almost felt pity for Alrai¡¯s future. The almost and pity parts were lies. Gertine flinched. Was that the reason for Velvet''s long stroll on the buffet? Was she expecting something like that? Nereus seemed to think about it, tilting his head for a seemingly interminable time. Then, he pushed Igern aside, lunging himself at Alrai. Igern was prepared for him to attack Velvet or Ethra, not Alrai. Well, maybe he was, but there was a limit to how prepared a person could be. Alrai tried to jump aside, but then, the six legged wolf rammed the table, tossing him to the floor. Gertine looked at Velvet, but saw her flipping a coin, before drawing something on a paper, covering it with her hand. ¡°A charm isn¡¯t gonna help us now. Ethra is probably going to come here.¡± He is probably using that idiot as a distraction to attack. Is he stupid? Does he not care about Irsen Kartal at all? Gertine thought, while taking some seeds from her dress. Well, Velvet did kill his brother. ¡°Can you see him?¡± Velvet finished the charm, starting to scribble on her paper figurines. The mages had divided into a few factions. Arhontissian mages, that were either trying to stop Nereus, or trying to help him, and Graham¡¯s supporters and enemies, who were doing the same, but the opposite way. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. The staff and orchestra had vacated as fast as they could. Except for an extremely brave clarinet player, who started playing a solo. ¡°Velvet, we have to get out.¡± ¡°No? If we go to a quiet and tranquil place, we will be found easily. We are harder to pinpoint in the middle of chaos.¡± As a certified trouble seeker, Velvet knew that calm never helped anyone. Also, with all this noise, Ethra¡¯s orders could not take effect. That was one of the reasons she did rile up Igern before, raising the tensions between the Arhontissians and Charlampians. The more mages getting provoked, the more chaos. Gertine was feeling lost, not used to being in the middle of a skirmish. She was smart, but real combat experience was something one needed experience to master. ¡°What do those seeds do?¡± ¡°They can grow very fast, I can control them to attack and restrain people.¡± ¡°Throw them in the middle of the fight. Make the weeds go crazy.¡± Gertine didn¡¯t want to, but Vouloire agreed. She tossed the seeds as far and as separated as she could, before using her magic for them to, quoting Velvet ¡®go crazy¡¯. The plants started moving around, slapping and distracting the mages. Ethra, Ethra¡­ Where are you? Velvet looked around, wanting to find the guy. Gertine stuck to Velvet, looking towards all sides. Then, she saw him. ¡°In our table. He is there now.¡± So we just need to go to the opposite side. That¡¯s a relief. Gertine saw Velvet going towards him. Why?! She didn¡¯t know if she should follow the damn lunatic, or try to get away. ¡°Ugh¡­ This better be worth something.¡± Ethra saw Velvet going towards him, and smiled at her, stopping his walk. Velvet responded in kindly, lifting the sides of her skirt to do a curtsy, directing a smile with more emotion to him. Then, Ethra felt something touch his foot. A paper figurine. It was just under the table a second ago. Boom! Gertine saw Ethra flying off with the explosion, pulling to a stop. Ethra rolled on the floor, getting up. He pulled out the Carni¡¯s Spine, recovered from his brother¡¯s corpse. He lifted his head to look at Velvet, before finding her gone. The amount of mages using spells and causing chaos didn''t help. ¡°Your brother was stronger.¡± He heard from behind, turning around suddenly. Velvet wasn¡¯t there. ¡°And smarter.¡± This time he managed to grab the piece of paper that was speaking, crushing it. ¡°Is talking all you can do?¡± He didn¡¯t raise his voice, those provocations being children¡¯s play. ¡°You¡¯ll be the Graham¡¯s downfall.¡± He turned to another side, wanting to crush the piece of paper, before seeing Velvet. She threw something at him. A red flash, then he felt his body slamming the floor, as if he was chained to it, a sharp, intense pain in his left shoulder. He tried to get up, but didn¡¯t even manage to move. ¡°Are you angry I killed your brother?¡± He heard her say, ¡°Do you know he was the reason someone¡¯s brother got killed?¡± Ethra scoffed. ¡°Your provocations are at the level of children. You can¡¯t see my face, but I¡¯m rolling my eyes.¡± Velvet squinted, and pulled out Sinoe¡¯s Baslard, ready to kill him. Okay, you don¡¯t want to talk? We don''t have to talk. Ethra groaned, he wasn¡¯t going to beg for his life. He waited for the feeling of bleeding out, but it never came. It wasn¡¯t Velvet being merciful, everyone else had also stopped. The only noise that could be heard were slow steps, entering the buffet. ¡°Did you kids have fun? All that noise woke me up¡­¡± An official mage. ¡°Weapons, magic and whatever else you¡¯re using, out¡­¡± It was a tired voice, but no one went against it. They physically couldn¡¯t. Ethra heard Velvet¡¯s annoyed noise, before being free. He got up slowly, feeling his shoulder dislocated. Turning to look at Velvet, she was giving him her back, taunting him to try and do something. But he was still feeling the official mage gaze on his neck, choosing to go back to his room in the end. ¡­ Velvet and Gertine ended up recuperating the table, which had gone traveling on its own after the explosion. Since it was made of wood, a few of Gertine¡¯s seeds fixed it pretty nicely. ¡°At least the official mage went back to sleep. Luckily he is of the Sloth Paradigm.¡± ¡°He was waiting for someone to almost die before intervening¡­¡± Velvet complained. ¡°He could have let me cut him a liiittle¡­¡± ¡°Or just kill him. That would¡¯ve been great.¡± Nereus said. ¡°...¡± ¡°Why are you here again?¡± Gertine asked. Nereus smiled sheepishly. ¡°Igern scolded me, told me I was an idiot, and to not come back until seeing me didn¡¯t anger him.¡± ¡°Is that so.¡± Velvet said. ¡°So¡­ Nereus?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Can I pet your wolf?¡± ¡°His name is Navros. And it''s his decision, he is free to choose.¡± ¡°Navros, can I pet you?¡± She saw the wolf nod, letting her caress his head. ¡­ Gertine stood in silence, some worry inside of her. Velvet had been so fast to try to kill Ethra, it made her uncomfortable. Even when she knew Velvet had killed at least two other persons before this, seeing someone go from a joking, cheerful attitude, to try and kill someone, to go back to clowning in less than an hour was unsettling. Some Paradigms had quick changes in emotions, like Wrath, but Knowledge didn¡¯t. She told that to Vouloire. ¡°Know who are your enemies, and know who are your friends. That is also knowledge. She knows leaving Ethra alive is a problem in the making. You¡¯re overthinking things. Still, I get why Kartal wants her in the Scales. She can be useful.¡± ¡°She feels more trouble than she is worth. But, if you say so, I¡¯ll believe you.¡± Chapter 34. Family curse Irsen Kartal was drinking in the Initiation¡¯s Room, next to some other mages. They were looking at the stage, where some recreational magic was showing the altercation at the Dodon-Mergifari airship. Putting so many young mages inside a ship was sure to provoke some fights, which was the idea. After all, seeing how the possibles selected reacted to conflict in a sudden confrontation was better than any show they could pull on the selection day. To the novice mages, that show was all they had to catch a selector¡¯s attention. But that was a lie. The trip to the Mergifari was already testing them. It didn¡¯t allow for murder, having official mages ready to stop any close attempt. Ethra¡¯s, in this case. Kartal looked at the images, feeling proud. He had been the one saying Velvet was interesting, but, from some comment, to seeing it, there was a difference. Even more when the two instigators of the fight were a Ropertti and a Graham. He guessed that Adeline Graham had refrained from telling his youngest son about not attacking Velvet, since she planned for Ethra to defeat her in that skirmish, recovering some wounded pride. A plan that had gone wrong. The reason was simple. Ethra wasn¡¯t planning on killing Velvet, maybe harming her, but not murder, since that could ruin his entrance to the Mergifari. On the other hand, Velvet already saw the Grahams as enemies, so killing one when the opportunity presented itself was removing a future problem early. Also, Ethra was the one that started it, so she could plead self defense! Laws didn¡¯t work like that, but anyway. Nereus was also an interesting one. He almost ripped Alrai Siberetti a new one, and his raw strength had caught the attention of some selectors. Especially the moment when he crushed the knife that Alrai used to try and stab him. With his teeth. As the leader of the Scales of Poine, he had access to a lot of information, so he knew that Nereus was the victor of one of the Queen¡¯s Arenas of this year. Unlike Charlampa, Arhontissa was too far away from the Mergifari for a sea route, leaving only the air route, which is not affordable to many wandering mages. So the Queen decided to host a number of tournaments, where only mages not affiliated to a family could participate, to try and win a ticket to the Mergifari. There were a few categories, so that not only the most physically strong could win. Still, Nereus was of the physically strong category. A street kid that stumbled upon a deceased mage¡¯s inheritance on the sewers of a city, obtaining magic and becoming part of the Predator Paradigm. Also called the Man-eater or Beast Paradigm, it was the middle ground between the Wrath and the Gluttony Paradigms. That alone should give enough clues to understand how troublesome it was. Which Alrai Siberetti did find out. And his father found it hilarious. That was what made gambling spells so annoying to use. Failing the gamble put the Siberetti against a ravenous dog with a golden medal. Actually, Irsen wasn¡¯t sure of the paternity of Siberiald, but he preferred not to ask. He kept presenting his ¡®children¡¯, even when he never found any woman or man that was sexually close to him. Not that there weren¡¯t offers, some people liked their men murderhobo clowns. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. Irsen coughed a bit, continuing with his original train of thought. Nereus and Velvet were the two mages that almost killed another in a matter of minutes. That made some attention go to Adeline Graham, who was staring at the images in silence, her face expressionless. ¡­ Why is Ethra teaming with a Ropertti? I was trying to make him fight the gambler, not the girl. She mentally reread the letter she sent a few hours ago to Ethra. There was a seal that prohibited any official mage from divulging that the novices were being watched right now, so she didn¡¯t say or hint at anything like that. Instead, she talked about how Siberina ROPERTTI had been the key point in Cornelius¡¯ death. She wanted Ethra to try to harm Alrai, not Velvet. She barely mentioned her, actually. And then, he teamed up with him, and ended up losing again. Were the Roperttis becoming a curse in her family? Was Ethra stupid? Thoughts like this were crossing Adeline¡¯s mind. Still, someone was overthinking more than her. ¡­ Winter looked at Nereus being lied, used and messed up with. She massaged her temples. One of the Queen¡¯s Champions being the conflict starter¡­ She understood Nereus¡¯s circumstances. He didn¡¯t know how to write or read, and was plenty uneducated. He was too used to street life, always quick to resort to violence. If Dianthus disrespected the Queen because he was a bonafide, prophecy chosen, holier than thou powerhouse, Nereus did it because he didn¡¯t know anything about politics, negotiations or etiquette. Winter did prefer Nereus, and he was her pick as a Selector. Still, Igern did scold him too hard¡­ But that ended up putting him closer to Velvet¡­ Winter also wanted Velvet as her apprentice. She could afford both, so there was no problem. If they became friends before entering the Mergifari, it would just make her job easier. ¡­ That spell¡­ Someone in the Selector¡¯s seats was looking at the moment when Velvet used a charm to throw Ethra on the ground. She was using a concealment spell to blur the symbol¡­ Hasdrubal squinted, caressing his long beard, trying to see if he could remember similar spells. Since the images were just a recreation, he couldn''t just use an uncover spell to break the concealment. And, even if he was the official mage on the airship, doing that was forbidden. The official mage couldn¡¯t ask anything about their abilities. Just stop the fights. Hasdrubal caressed his beard again, his mind replaying the scene from every angle. Nothing, he didn¡¯t know those chains. But he knew something about Velvet. A novice mage that appeared in Petren, no one behind her. It was weird that she had such a spell, did she come across an inheritance? Some mages, especially wanderers, became mages after finding some inheritance in the wild. Mage inheritances were the remains of an abandoned mage¡¯s corpse, usually a wandering one, since they tended to hide before perishing, unlike mages with a family that could inherit their remnants. Since they couldn¡¯t become ghosts or reincarnate, their bodies and souls, mixed with the Primeval Sea, ended up becoming altars. An inheritance had three parts. The will. The last desires of the mage were written in a book made with the mage¡¯s skin. The ornaments. The things the mage had with them upon death. Usually grimoires and artifacts. The blessing. The remaining body of the mage. Melting upon death, it became a small lake, where the future mage must open their own Esca. That way, the Paradigm would be the same as the deceased mage, making both the will and the ornaments useful. Hasdrubal wanted to know what Velvet did. If it was because of an inheritance, he hadn¡¯t seen one like that in his hundreds of years of age. Chains. The thing that held Ethra in place. They looked weak and fragile, almost translucent with how weak the mage using them was. But they were new to him. As the more advanced mage in the Knowledge Paradigm, finding something related to magic he didn¡¯t know about was a surprise. He had been subsiding with technological advancements for so long, new magic made his mouth water. How much does she have? What else does she know? Who is behind her? It didn¡¯t matter if Velvet didn¡¯t select him. Whoever she ended up choosing wouldn¡¯t refuse the possibility of striking a deal with him. After all, he was Hasdrubal the All-knowing, the Mergifari¡¯s brain. Chapter 35. Please search Velvet was busy cleaning the bathtub. She had completed the ¡®emergency purification¡¯, cleaning her body of miasma. Unfortunately, that didn¡¯t mean she could just jump to her dream again and say that name. Being so close to losing control brought more problems than miasma. Some of them affected the mind; after all, she had listened to Her voice. Were she to repeat the dream scenario right now, becoming corrupted was the only available ending. So she kept on scrubbing the rot smelling thing. ¡­ A whole day had passed after the conflict. Velvet had given her clothes to the cleaning staff yesterday, and now they were back. Dressing up, she went to the buffet again, picking food. Gertine was already awake, and so was Nereus. ¡°Huh, you¡¯re still grounded?¡± ¡°I guess so.¡± Velvet saw a blue rat on his arms. ¡°Wait, wasn¡¯t this one poisoned?¡± ¡°It¡¯s recovering, they told me it wasn¡¯t deadly poison.¡± Gertine¡¯s mouth twitched. ¡°And you threw that tantrum when the rat was not dead?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t know she was going to survive¡­¡± Navros laid his head on Velvet¡¯s lap, who had just sat. She scratched the wolf''s head with her free hand, ignoring the fact that he was staring at her bacon. ¡°Doesn¡¯t Nereus feed you?¡± ¡°He already ate.¡± The guy defended himself. ¡°Don¡¯t lie to me, look at his eyes, these are the eyes of a hungry, unfed beast.¡± Nereus leaned over a bit, staring at the eyes of his wolf, unblinking. Then he looked deeply at Velvet¡¯s eyes. ¡°No, he is fed.¡± ¡°A-alright.¡± Velvet patted the wolf¡¯s head. ¡°Oh, right, did those two come here?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t see them.¡± Gertine said. ¡°But that Igern guy has been glancing at us.¡± Nereus flinched, looking at the table. Velvet turned around, matching gazes with Igern. Then, she winked at him, making a heart with her fingers. Igern grimaced, but stopped glaring at them, going back to talk with a blue haired girl. ¡°Oh, who is the blue girl? She has a snake, right?¡± ¡°The snake is called Whistle.¡± Nereus said. ¡°And the girl?¡± Nereus shrugged. ¡°You don¡¯t know her?¡± ¡°No, I do, I just don''t remember her name.¡± Come on now, man. She is from your group, I saw her with Igern yesterday¡­ Velvet thought. She saw Gertine giving a piece of cheese to the rat. ¡°Have any of you ever been to the Mergifari?¡± Nereus moved his head side to side, denying. But Gertine nodded. ¡°Every few years, to get materials on the market. There are clandestine and private markets that magicians can use to get common materials, but the Mergifari¡¯s are the most varied.¡± If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°This month, for example, is going to have things that you won¡¯t be able to get otherwise. Unless you wait another three years.¡± Are you telling me to spend a lot of money? I don¡¯t know what things are rare on the Mergifari and what not¡­ ¡°What¡¯s the difference between official Mergifari shops and temporary ones?¡± ¡°Official ones are closer to the entrance. They also have the Mergifari¡¯s seal in a visible place. So if you see something that you like in those shops, and it¡¯s not a strange artifact or something already uncommon, you should wait before buying it.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the possibility of a scam?¡± ¡°On the Mergifari, zero. In markets, shops or dealers outside it, depends. At most, some shops may have things a bit more expensive than they really are, so you should haggle a bit.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what¡¯s the ¡®normal¡¯ price for magical things¡­¡± ¡°Me neither¡­¡± Nereus and Velvet stared at Gertine in silence, with pleading eyes. Gertine looked to the side, taking a sip from her vase. ¡°We¡­ we can go together, and if there¡¯s something you like I¡¯ll tell you if the price is fair.¡± ¡°But don¡¯t get distracted and get lost, or the next time we see each other will be past the entrance.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°The Mergifari was at first a secret organization, and, to protect themselves, the founding mages used a concealment spell, so that not even their peers could recognize them in case they were found. Instead of removing the spell once things were over, the Director moved it to the market.¡± ¡°I understand. That way one doesn¡¯t risk buying something someone else wants and getting attacked, unless they talk about it first.¡± It was a good way to shop. Especially for novice mages, who were the ones with more risk of getting mugged. But it made moving in groups kind of hard, truth be told. ¡°Still. Even if you get lost, do watch all the temporary shops, don¡¯t just give up and go wait until the selection day.¡± ¡°We know that!¡± ¡°Just making sure.¡± They passed the remaining time talking, until the wait was over and they almost arrived at the Mergifari. ¡­ Velvet was looking through the window, suitcase in hand, waiting for the airship to land, Gertine and Nereus next to her. ¡°Are you still grounded? Man, that guy is petty.¡± ¡°I no longer care, he has no power to really do anything.¡± Velvet didn¡¯t tell him about political strength; she had come to the realization that Nereus didn¡¯t really care about society. Good for him, actually. She looked towards the Mergifari. The island, not the tower. It was big; from the air it couldn¡¯t be seen whole. That was also the mist¡¯s fault, which made the sea route very difficult to navigate. The Mergifari had three parts (that Velvet knew of). The market, where one could sell and buy materials, artifacts and spells. Gertine also talked about an Arena where one could get money fast by fighting. Nereus seemed interested in that. The actual Mergifari, the tower where magic knowledge was stored and shared. It included more things apart from the tower, actually. A place for enrolled mages to live, and a few buildings to adapt to the increasing number of mages that entered there. And the Unnamed Forest. Velvet didn¡¯t have information about it, actually. Gertine had said that she¡¯d been told, making emphasis on the fact that it wasn¡¯t first hand information, that it was a magic forest outside the authority of anyone. That included the Director and any god. It had a magical barrier separating it from the rest of the Mergifari, and sometimes official (Gertine also did make emphasis on the official part. Even more than the ¡®second hand information¡¯ part) mages entered to hunt or gather strange and dangerous creatures, plants, minerals¡­ There was a piece of forest inside the Mergifari zone, but it was safe, since it had been cleared before putting the barrier. Velvet didn¡¯t ¡®see¡¯ any barrier from up there, but she hoped the delimitation was at least marked. ¡°Attention please. Attention please.¡± An owl entered through the walls, perching himself on a black, curly staff that wasn¡¯t there before. ¡°You¡¯re now about to enter the Mergifari. For first time visitors, this information is of your interest.¡± ¡°Just upon descending, a concealment spell will take place. You¡¯ll leave one after another, alone or in groups, with twenty seconds of difference. If someone brought children, please do not let go of their hands.¡± ¡°If any children get lost, please say the name Udulluay, or search for the closest Udulluay, and we¡¯ll go get you.¡± ¡°I am Udulluay. Every owl in the Mergifari is also Udulluay.¡± A hivemind familiar? ¡°Familiars without pocket dimension will be put inside a temporary container. Bringing them out in the market is forbidden.¡± ¡°The use of tracking spells before entering the market is forbidden.¡± ¡°The use of magic in the market, outside of dueling in the Arena, is forbidden.¡± ¡°The shopkeeper has the decision to choose the punishment if you¡¯re caught stealing and cannot pay the price.¡± ¡°We are currently in the Selection Month, therefore your shopping options have increased. Please do not spend more than what you are carrying. The calling of fae won¡¯t work once the concealment spell takes effect.¡± ¡°If you have any more questions, feel free to ask. If you have any more questions when you¡¯re out in the Mergifari, please search for Udulluay.¡± ¡°I am Udulluay. Every owl in the Mergifari is also Udulluay.¡± Chapter 36. Reaction No one asked anything else, so the owl left. The people started getting in line to disembark. Velvet saw Ethra and Alrai also on the line. Ethra glared at her with disdain, so she took that personally, going to bother them. There was still some time for her group to get down, after all. ¡°Hey, if it¡¯s the bad choices duo! Oh, I remember that my spell dislocated your shoulder. Did you pop it back in?¡± Ethra opened his mouth to answer, but Alrai spoke faster. ¡°I was the one that did that, actually.¡± ¡°Niceee, did you also tell him that now that his first time dislocating a shoulder is done, the second is even easier?¡± ¡°Are you threatening me?¡± Ethra squinted at her. ¡°I¡¯m just saying that you¡¯re free to challenge me again. If you dare.¡± I need someone to try the dream spells on, after all. ¡°Does the offer extend to me?¡± Alrai kept including himself in the conversation. ¡°Of course! I¡¯m curious as to how much a Siberetti can bend.¡± ¡°Probably all the way.¡± Ethra said, making Alrai turn to give him a kind of dangerous smile. ¡°Oh my! You should¡¯ve told me I was third wheeling!¡± Velvet mocked. ¡°I thought you knew already.¡± Now it was Ethra¡¯s turn to give Alrai something. An elbow to the chest. Which ended with both of them hurt, since Ethra used the arm he had dislocated yesterday. Velvet clapped. ¡°What a great slapstick comedy!¡± ¡°Go back to your damn friends already.¡± ¡°See you in two weeks!¡± Velvet left them, going back to Gertine and Nereus. Gertine looked exasperated at her. ¡°What were you even doing?¡± She asked. ¡°Building relationships.¡± Gertine¡¯s eyebrow twitched. ¡°Do I have to do that too?¡± Nereus asked, looking to where Ethra and Alrai were. Now her other eyebrow also twitched. ¡°Of course not.¡± ¡°I still have a piece of underwear Navros ripped off him.¡± ¡°Why do you still have it?¡± Gertine massaged her temples when Nereus shrugged. ¡°Whatever, our turn is now, let¡¯s go shopping.¡± Like that, they finally entered the Mergifari, leaving the airship behind. Hearing what the concealment spell did was very different from being affected by it. A few seconds ago, she was looking at Gertine. Now, a stranger in a cloak was in her place. ¡°...¡± Velvet tried to say her name, but nothing came out. ¡°Wow, it¡¯s strong.¡± ¡°I warned you.¡± A neutral voice she didn¡¯t know or recognize came from where Gertine was, answering her. ¡°Try to not get lost. If we get separated by more than two steps, our voices will not be heard by each other.¡± A stranger that was in place of Nereus talked. ¡°They put ¡­ and ¡­ in a ball!¡± ¡°Can you focus? Getting separated now it¡¯s too easy.¡± ¡°Should we grab hands?¡± ¡°Like children? Yeah, okay.¡± They grabbed hands, but there was a bit of confusion. ¡°Is the one supposed to guide us at the front?¡± ¡°No, I''m in the middle, change positions.¡± ¡°...¡± They changed hands. ¡°Okay, better now. Let''s go.¡± Velvet ended up the last one, so that meant Nereus was in the middle. ¡°Gang, move out!¡± Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. ¡°I just know which one of you said that.¡± ¡°Ehe.¡± Like that, they entered the market. It was a bit like a normal market, with stands full of ¡®vegetables¡¯, trinkets, clothes, weapons and other things. Except that everyone looked the same, a creepy cloaked figure of a meter eighty with an unrecognizable voice. ¡°These are the official shops, so we can come later. It¡¯s better to go to the end and then walk backwards.¡± ¡°We follow you! Hm, now that I think about it, this cloaked figure spell looks creepy, but, knowing we are walking holding hands, it¡¯s kinda cute.¡± ¡°Do you think the cloak is real fabric?¡± Velvet fondled it a bit, ¡°... I cannot rip a piece, so it seems just like an illusion.¡± ¡°Ejem. Here we are. I want to go shop by shop, so if you see something you like, just tug.¡± ¡°Yes, yes.¡± Velvet was more interested in the general prices of things. After going through a few shops, she had a general idea. Grimoires, the professional ones, went from 500 auris to 10.000. Artifacts had a bigger range, but from 300 auris to whatever. The fae bells that Gertine used cost 100 auris, a set of twenty. Velvet bought one set with pain, feeling her pocket lighter. ¡°The ¡­ gifted one of those for winning.¡± Nereus should be referring to the Queen¡¯s Tournament. ¡°Just you wait until there¡¯s something you want!¡± ¡°Food. Oh, and ¡­ mentioned we may need an alchemy set.¡± ¡°Royal or petty?¡± ¡°Petty.¡± So he meant Igern. ¡°I already have one, but those are better if you buy them at official shops.¡± ¡°How much¡­?¡± ¡°300¡± Velvet cursed under her breath. ¡°How do mages even make that much money?¡± ¡°Arena if you like fighting, or selling potions, charms, exotic animal parts, magical beasts or magic plants.¡± Potions and charms were the cheapest things, unless they were made with already expensive materials. ¡°Where is the Arena?¡± The one asking was Nereus. ¡°In the limits of the market, we will pass it in a minute. Still, only one person can enter to fight, so we will separate if we do that.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll go later.¡± As they were passing by an artifact shop, something inside it exploded. Velvet¡¯s first instinct was to cover her face, especially her eyes. That made her let go of Nereus¡¯ hand. Udulluay came flying to check the shop, talking to the owner. ¡°Can you two hear me?¡± She received no response, which she was kind of expecting already. So she went to check the explosive shop. No use crying over spilled milk! We will see each other anyway! ¡°Cause of accident, unauthorized handling of an artifact on exposition.¡± Udulluay talked. Velvet could hear him even when he was further than two steps. It also seemed the silence penalty didn¡¯t affect the shop''s owners, since Velvet could hear with absolute clarity the refined, diverse and probably multicultural string of insults, curses and threats that they were directing towards the apparent responsible of the explosion. ¡°I am speaking! You two shut up!¡± The owl ended up tired of the two figures arguing. Velvet could only hear one side. ¡°Five thousand auris in damage! How are you expecting me to- Uh. R-really?¡± Velvet saw the other figure pulling out a few strange looking bills. Oh, those are vons. Never seen one in person before. Vons were the currency of nobles and extremely rich people. One von was equal to 1000 auris. They came in bills of one, ten, fifty and a hundred. They paid all of it in vons¡­ damn. Velvet waited for the cloaked figure to leave, before approaching the shop¡¯s remains. She picked some pieces and parts that seemed usable, or that didn¡¯t fully break. ¡°Are you interested in crafting artifacts?¡± The shop¡¯s owner, now happy of having been paid for the damages, wanted to do small talk. ¡°I don¡¯t know, guess I¡¯ll find out this month.¡± Velvet looked under the dust. ¡°What was the thing that exploded? I thought the Mergifari forbid firearms and similar things.¡± ¡°They do, but there are legal loopholes in that law. As long as the weapon functions with magic components, it''s an artifact, not a firearm.¡± ¡°Oh, so that¡¯s why there¡¯s sigils on the pieces.¡± ¡°Exactly. That idiot connected two pieces from different artifacts and activated a magical reaction.¡± ¡°Idiot or genius, that was a strong boom.¡± ¡°A genius would buy the thing first, and take them to a safe place to experiment.¡± ¡°Idiot then.¡± Velvet finished picking things, putting them on the counter. ¡°I want all of this.¡± ¡°Hm, 200 auris.¡± ¡°I offer 25.¡± ¡°Twenty five? Are you insane?!¡± Velvet separated a few pieces. ¡°This one has a damaged sigil. This one has a part broken. This one got burned.¡± Then she saw the shop owner grab a half burned stool, sit in front of her, and roll up their sleeves. ¡°What about the materials? They are still magic. 175 auris and everything is yours.¡± ¡°So you want the price to be based on weight? This one is made of wood, and this one is iron. 30 auris.¡± ¡­ After a half hour, Velvet got all the pieces and the ¡®Crafting for Dummies¡¯ book for 50 auris. She put them inside the suitcase, going to the next shop. She only needed to save 300 for an alchemy set, and a 100 for emergencies. That would leave her with 430 auris from the Doyle¡¯s reward to spend. ¡°Better make it count.¡± Chapter 37. Royal...e Gertine had told her about the hotel where the mages could stay until going back home or entering the Mergifari. From 5 auris per week to¡­ whatever the best rooms cost. Velvet was fine with the cheapest option, since she was used to sharing a room with other children. Two weeks were ten auris, payment upfront. She found it strange that there was only one hotel in the whole market, but maybe there was a magical explanation. And there was. The hotel only had five doors, but, depending on what key was used to open any of them, the mage found themselves in a different room. Only one key for the tenant, but she had asked and the owner had a master key. Food was included at 2 extra auris per week, so Velvet paid them. After having lunch while reading the ¡®Crafting for Dummies¡¯, she left her suitcase inside the room, going out again. She wanted to see the Arena. ¡­ Funnily enough, it actually looked like a glass tower. It wasn¡¯t transparent, more like grayish-bluish. When she entered, she understood why it was off limits. The concealment spell was weaker here, and another one was on top of it. Some mages here had strange forms, from normal, human ones, to bizarre, inhuman ones. There was even a mix of a girl and a cat. An illusion spell? Why? She went to the counter, where the catgirl was. ¡°Hello! How can I help you? Do you want to register on the Arena?¡± ¡°Not yet, I want to know first why there are illusions.¡± ¡°Oh, a newbie! Yey! You will surely have fun here!¡± I didn¡¯t say I wanted to register¡­ ¡°The illusions are for registered members. Imagine, you see a fighter that you love, but, if they look the same as everyone else around you, it¡¯s kiiiind of a turnoff. And that makes people not want to spend money on them.¡± ¡°So, genius that we are, we decided to give every fighter here an avatar and an alias! That way, if someone wants to tip their favorite fighter, or buy some merch, they can do it easily!¡± Tips? Merch? ¡°What percentage of the profits do you take?¡± A bit interested now, Velvet asked. The girl¡¯s eyes shined with greed, but in a kinda comical way. ¡°We do not take part of the tips, but we do take fifty percent of the merch sales from levels one to ten, twenty five percent from levels eleven to fifty, and ten percent from up there.¡± ¡°And how do these levels work?¡± ¡°Everyone starts at level one, and from there you move. Your enemy will never be from the next or previous categories. Losing to someone from a higher rank than you won¡¯t harm your position, but having a tie with someone of lower rank will. You can advance by defeating higher ranks or ending a combat in a draw with someone of high rank.¡± ¡°On the contrary, if you lose or have a draw with someone of a lower rank, you will lose positions. Losing towards a higher rank, or winning against a lower rank have no changes in your position.¡± ¡°So fighting people of lower rank than you is useless?¡± Velvet understood the logic of the penalties, but she didn¡¯t see any long term profit. ¡°Winning in lower levels gives you 50 auris. A draw gives you 25. Losing gives you zero.¡± ¡°You should have said so at the start¡­¡± ¡°Let me finish first! Fights in the lower levels are under an equality formation, so any spell gets its power reduced to the same level. Also any real intent to permanently harm the opponent gets a very hard punishment.¡± This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. ¡°Huh, so there¡¯s no possibility of someone coming with a broken spell and wiping the floor with everyone?¡± ¡°Exactly. We use the lower levels as a way for novice mages to earn experience and expand their growth possibilities. But from level eleven to upwards, we assume the fighter has enough experience to keep themselves alive.¡± ¡°Huh¡­ it sounds kind of great, put like that.¡± One of Velvet¡¯s fears towards the Arena was ending up against a sadistic powerhouse that wanted to be a bully. She had been kicked around by Cornelius and Siberina, and didn¡¯t like the experience. ¡°It does, right! Do you want to register and try?!¡± Damn it, you sold it to me so well! Only true idiots would refuse this! Being charmed like this by the other party, Velvet had no objections! It sounded like safe money! ¡°... Yeah, okay.¡± ¡°Great! Do you have any alias preference? I think Wallety or Coin Pursuer would fit you the best!¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t those a bit too on the nose? How about Coin?¡± ¡°... That one is already in use.¡± ¡°Damn.¡± ¡°Gold Digger is also in use.¡± ¡°I did not want that one!¡± They kept silent for a few seconds. ¡°Oh! Why don¡¯t you first start customizing your avatar?! Maybe then the name will come out on its own!¡± The catgirl put a thick book in front of Velvet. ¡°Are all the customizations free?¡± ¡°Some are paid options.¡± ¡°I just want the free options.¡± They stared at each other for a moment, then, she took the book and changed it for basically nothing. ¡°You know, Cheapass is also in use.¡± ¡°Stop complaining, you¡¯re getting a new fighter because I need money!¡± ¡°Well, for free options, we give the mage the choice to use their own real aspect. That is kinda popular, so a lot of mages pick that option.¡± ¡°Should¡¯ve said that sooner, I don¡¯t even need an alias like that!¡± Velvet saw the catgirl looking at her cloaked face, and then down, before fixing some kinda necklace and giving it to her. She put it on, becoming once again herself. ¡°Finally, that cloaked thing is so depressing..¡± ¡°Yeah, some fighters end up joining the Arena only to see something other than cloaked faces everywhere.¡± ¡°Only the Arena has that option?¡± ¡°Nah, most places at the edges of the market also have something similar. People would just go crazy if not!¡± ¡°Huh, really?¡± ¡°Yup. Now, you are going to fight right now!¡± It wasn¡¯t a question. ¡°Wait, I need to make some charms, I¡¯m not exactly a frontline mage¡­¡± ¡°Oh, we have some materials ready in the waiting room for you to use, free of charge. Also you can find presents hidden once the party starts! Just make sure to leave the artifacts where you found them. And read their warnings.¡± She went pushing Velvet towards one strange door. ¡°W-wait, how does the arena look?! You didn¡¯t finish explaining!¡± ¡°I know, but isn¡¯t that way better? Arm yourself, make allies, and finish the labyrinth!¡± ¡°What allies? What labyrinth now?! You are changing things!¡± ¡°I never said combats were one against one in a safe room. That¡¯s boring to watch.¡± ¡°Then?¡± Velvet got pushed inside the room. ¡°Do you know the term ¡®Battle Royale¡¯?¡± ¡°No?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll soon find out then!¡± The catgirl closed the door, leaving Velvet inside. Velvet groaned, but didn¡¯t exactly complain, preferring to actually use her time getting ready. There were a few rows of shelves, filled with materials. They weren¡¯t the expensive type, but they were waaay better than the ones Velvet had. There was a sand clock on top of the door opposite the one she entered, that was slowly filling. She had around ten minutes to prepare. Hm, It¡¯s so great I actually read that book. She put on some protective goggles, gloves, a mask and a thick boiler suit that covered the rest of her body, grabbing different things. And I can test some of those concepts¡­ free of cost. ¡­ A drop of sweat ran though Mirrs¡¯ back, but she ignored it, looking at the time that the fighters had to get ready. The sooner they entered, the more time they had to make things, but the less materials they had, and, the later they entered, the less time they had, but the more materials. That meant that entering in the middle was usually the best time to join. Velvet had been the last one to enter, that¡¯s why Mirrs had been so persuasive. There were several new faces in this battle, so one more would increase the viewer¡¯s interest! Some of those may grow to be in the big leagues, after all! Chapter 38. Volunteer Velvet looked at her new paper sheets. Until now, she had used normal paper sheets and her own magic to do the paper figurines, but the ¡®Crafting for Dummies¡¯ had opened her mind. Artifacts were made enchanting the prime materials. So, if one wanted, for example, good paper for magic, the best one would be made by finding first a piece of land full of magic, usually where dryads and other tree-like entities lived¡­ And use the magical tree of your choice to make the paper. Usually killing the creature that lived there. That was the most high quality way. Another one would be growing a tree while fertilizing it with compost made from magical beast waste, which was the common way. Velvet found a few of those sheets of paper, then the next step came. Originally, she just enchanted the paper and made it into paper figurines. Now, knowing about the addition and compatibility law, she could add some steps. Compatibility meant the things that could mix without fully transforming something. For example, something that broke the compatibility law were her exploding paper figurines. By mixing a fire spell with paper magic, they reacted and exploded, but she lost the paper figurine that way. The opposite was the strengthening spell that made them harder to break. That one was compatible. Some things worked because they broke the compatibility law, while others worked because they didn¡¯t. The addition law only applied to the things that followed the compatibility law. Addition meant the things that could be added to something without ruining its original purpose. So, if Velvet were to mix fairy dust and gunpowder in the paper, the figurines obtained should be able to teleport and have increased explosion strength. That was an addition chain. The original spell went: Normal paper sheet + Velvet¡¯s own magic = Basic paper figurines. Now: Magical paper sheet + Fairy Dust + Gunpowder + Velvet¡¯s own magic = ??? So she tried that. The paper figurines bloomed from the sheet, slowly spinning. Every time they spinned, they teleported to a different part of the room. ¡°Hm¡­¡± Then, the figurines started popping colorful, blinding lights uncontrollably, as if they had become miniature fireworks. That was bad. Velvet stopped them fast, before they burned down the room and the materials. It was a true closed room chase, since the figurines didn¡¯t stop teleporting. She ended up putting some blessed water in a broom and whacking them with it. Still, they ended up making a mess of the room. Oh well, free of charge. It seemed that fairy dust and gunpowder did not follow the compatibility law. ¡°That¡¯s why you wear protection and experiment¡­¡± She sighed. ¡°Still, the fairy dust IS very good.¡± She heard Hyde''s voice in her head. ¡°Five minutes.¡± Velvet grabbed a reddish bottle at random. ¡°Salamander wast-¡­ Uh, that sounds no compatible and weird.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what a coward would say. Mix it.¡± ¡°You are just curious about the result. I have five minutes Hyde.¡± ¡°Are you a chicken?¡± ¡°... You want salamander shit? Okay.¡± She started making a new paper sheet. ¡°... Why is it so red?¡± Velvet finished it again, and summoned the paper figurines. This time they still spinned and teleported, but didn¡¯t pop. Still, they had gained some¡­ strange paper hands, like a salamander. ¡°If they end up being fire resistant, I¡¯m stepping on you.¡± She didn¡¯t try them, the time was running out, so she made some charms, picked all the magical paper sheets in case her new figurines were useless, or she had to make more, and every random material that fit in her pockets. Even gunpowder. She even found some seeds similar to Gertine¡¯s, pocketing them. The time ran out, and the door opened. Velvet removed the protective gear, since there was a sign that ordered to do so, before grabbing the paper figurines to put them in her clothes, where they were supposed to go. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. But, every time she grabbed one, it just teleported from her grasp. Also, they seemed to have become a bit slippery, some type of¡­ slime covering them. ¡°Are you challenging me?¡± She cleaned her hand with the wall. ¡°They are as obedient as you, look at them spin.¡± ¡°Hm, I can just use them on the first mage that crosses my path then.¡± Velvet crossed the door, followed by the paper figurines, arriving at a maze. Illuminated by some strange bugs that crawled on the wall, which was covered by blue ivy, the maze had five meters of height, and the width varied between one to five meters, which Velvet found very appealing to ambushes. She sent two paper figurines to the front, two to the back. Even if now the door was behind her, that would change once she started moving. Made two to teleport on top of her, and the remaining four kept close to her. The catgirl had mentioned that she could find artifacts to use, so she paid special attention to anything out of the ordinary. She didn¡¯t know how many mages were inside the maze until the necklace that Mirrs gave to her vibrated a bit. Injecting some magic onto it, a string of words ran through her mind. Calling yourself that and being the first to lose is coolawesomely lame. ¡°Ah.¡± Velvet couldn''t help but say. Gamblers passive ability was a pain in the ass. She was sure they would end up meeting. Velvet matched her gaze with a skull with rubies for eyes. ¡°You understand my pain, don¡¯t you?¡± She grabbed it with one hand, lifting it. ¡°The pain of mocking someone and finding them the next day when you are alone¡­¡± The necklace vibrated. ¡°Ah, it sounds so good, but also so baaad¡­¡± She loved finding stuff, but the opposite sounded atrocious. Still¡­ She could set an ambush that way. Alrai would end up finding her anyway, his gambler passive making it obvious, so she could just add fire to it. She also didn¡¯t want to throw the skull, to be honest. Walking until she found a four way crossroad, she started setting some traps, making her paper figurines observe the surroundings. Then, she climbed up the wall, until sitting on a rock close to the ceiling, after burying several seeds and lust charms in the inner part of her trap. She also buried some in the earth under her, in case she had to jump. Then, she waited, holding the skull in her arms. The traps consisted of weakening, slowing and dizzying charms on the outside, and some plant ones on the inside. She had used a lot of materials to restore the strength of the lust charms that the difference in Paradigms caused. Free things were the damn best. If a mage wanted to cross this place, they would find themselves weakened before being beaten up by weeds. All while Velvet watched. A paper figure teleported in front of her, making some signals. Someone was coming. Plural, actually. By the way they were running and gasping, it was someone escaping and someone chasing. Good. They didn¡¯t even think about a third person joining, running at full speed inside the trap. After all, they had been running all that way without problems, why would problems arise now? The charms hit them at once, slowing them. The first person tripped and rolled on the ground, being caught by a plant in a second. The second got luckier, since she was getting ready to defeat the running one, she was ready to attack, even after being weakened. She even managed to slash a few plants with a sword made of ice. ¡°You coward!¡± The mage shouted, looking around. ¡°Come out! Don¡¯t you have any balls?!¡± None whatsoever. Velvet thought, not making any movement to reveal herself. And Ethra called my provoking skills childlike¡­ The mage shouted all the time, she seemed to be specialized in close combat, so Velvet being hidden did ruin any chance for her to counterattack. The other mage, Velvet barely saw them, covered by weeds as they were, tried to convince her to team up, but she still ignored them. After whacking them with plants for a few minutes, the first mage disappeared with a puff of smoke, followed by the other mage. So that¡¯s what happens once someone loses. That translates to money, right? So even if I lose one fight, I still won money. ¡°Found you.¡± A voice sounded deep in the path in front of Velvet. A paper figurine teleported in front of her, even when the warning was late. She saw Alrai jumping and sidestepping her charms, getting closer. She also saw him playing with something. It was a yo-yo. He tossed and swung it around, making some very cool tricks, in Velvet''s opinion. Once he arrived very close to where Velvet was, he stored the toy in his clothes. ¡°My beloved third wheel, I have no qualms about serenading at you from down here, but I would very much prefer for you to come down.¡± ¡°Oh, but my dear jester, a show is more enjoyable from the public position.¡± Alrai laughed, a nice laugh that was unnerving deep down. ¡°This show requires a volunteer.¡± Chapter 39. Silver spoon ¡°You will find your volunteers waiting¡­ But be careful, they do bite.¡± The plants raised again, slamming around in a random manner. Alrai jumped around, evading the lashes, but becoming unable to go closer to Velvet. Trying to hit a gambler directly was a lost cause, since the chance of some coincidence happening was high. So hitting in a disorderly way was the best against them. Velvet called back her figurines, trying to pinpoint Alrai¡¯s location between the plants. He moves so fast¡­ Not as fast as Siberina, though. She realized that Alrai was moving a bit weird in some jumps. He had fought someone before, and there was also the aftermath of his fight with Nereus. I can take him, she realized. As long as she kept on dragging this out, Alrai was going to get tired, eventually making a mistake and getting beaten like scrambled eggs. She clapped, mocking him. ¡°Well, that was a fan-tas-tic show! But the time to close the curtain has come!¡± ¡°I¡¯ll start the final act then!¡± She saw a few white lights coming from under the plants, mixed with Alrai¡¯s voice, making an enchantation. He then launched himself up, towards Velvet¡¯s location. She waited for him a bit, then she jumped, falling on the soft plants she had previously buried. Alrai slammed the wall, and then turned his body to jump again. Boom! A paper figurine that was waiting there exploded, launching Alrai away from Velvet and to the floor. ¡°Huh, the salamander waste works awesomely¡­¡± Velvet made a note to buy some after this¡­ Or maybe just buy a salamander. She got up, ordering the plants to slam where Alrai had fallen. The plants moved in unison, rushing towards him. Looking at them, Velvet flinched when she felt some type of ¡®click¡¯ in her mind. It was the way the plants just positioned themselves. A coincidence had just happened. Her gaze met with Alrai¡¯s, nothing between them. She saw Alrai grin, dashing towards her. Velvet threw herself on the ground, rolling to her right, feeling the wind coming from Alrai''s movements over her. Velvet stood in a crouched position, using the plants to cover herself. "Nononono, don''t run away. Come here." Alrai punched one branch, breaking it in half. "I''m not running away, I''m playing hard to get." Sliding backwards, Velvet was entering the zone dominated by plants. ¡°Who wants something, costs him something.¡± ¡°True. That makes the feelings when you obtain it so much more delightful.¡± Alrai crushed the paper figurine next to him before it exploded. Velvet readied her charms. ¡°If you obtain it.¡± ¡°Exactly! Say, how does a small gamble sound?¡± ¡°Horrendous.¡± Alrai extended his hands while stepping over an overly aggressive plant. ¡°Listen to it first! So, how ab-¡± ¡°Wow, such an awful idea, atrocious.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t eve-¡± ¡°A worm has better insights than you.¡± Alrai smiled at her, but there was a tinge of annoyance on it. Velvet grinned from behind the leaves, tossing slowing and weakening charms. Alrai jumped back, to avoid being affected by them. "Nononono, don''t run away. Come here." Velvet said, in a tone similar to Alrai¡¯s. Alrai kept on receding, until he lost all the distance he had won previously. Taking a sinuous knife from his pocket, he put it between his teeth. Then, he raised his hands slightly, opened them up with the palms facing him, and made his thumbs kiss. The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Spring¡¯s Gamble. Velvet recognized that spell from Siberina¡¯s familiar. Gambler¡¯s spells were a pain to use and to deal with, so she hadn¡¯t tried to use any until now. They were extremely hard to use, even more when one didn¡¯t share the Paradigm. Velvet could use lust spells without barely any problems. At most, the effect was weaker, and her control on the plants was lower than Gertine¡¯s. On the other hand, gambling spells were based on luck. The effect of using them would be the same, what changed was the chance of failure. Alrai always had from fifty percent or more chance of success, but, if Velvet used the same spell, her chance of success would be twenty five percent or less, and losing a gamble ended up being detrimental. Spring¡¯s Gamble was like that. It was an enhancement spell that had an increased chance of succeeding against nature based spells. Like plants. Alrai pulled the knife from his mouth, the spell in effect. Slash! A plant fell, having been delivered an accurate hit to its weakest part. Then, he repeated the motion with his hands again, palms facing him with the thumbs touching. Velvet sent the plants again, but they tangled between themselves for seemingly no reason, being cut down easily again for Alrai. He did the motion again. ¡°Are you just gonna use the same trick over and over?!¡± Velvet shouted at him from the other side of the decreasing plants, walking backwards. ¡°That¡¯s what being a gambler means!¡± He answered her, cutting. ¡°We bet!¡± Slash! ¡°And bet!¡± Slash! ¡°Until the final prize!¡± Slash! ¡°Is standing!¡± Slash! ¡°Right in front of us!¡± The last plant fell, and Velvet¡¯s back hit a wall. Alrai panted, taking breaths. Still, seeing Velvet¡¯s slightly panicked face was worth it. ¡°Well, well, well, seems like I got you.¡± He mocked. ¡°What should I do to you now? Oh, do you remember what happens once a shoulder gets dislocated? Once it happens the first time, the second is even easier.¡± He grinned when Velvet glared at him, waiting for her answer. She opened her mouth slowly. ¡°Do¡­ Do you know what the first law of gambling is?¡± ¡°Please educate me.¡± Alrai said. Velvet looked to her right, taking her sweet time. ¡°Never gamble what you can¡¯t afford to lose.¡± She looked at him, pointing downwards. Alrai looked down, seeing a paper figurine stuck on his crotch. Then, he looked back at Velvet. Her scared expression had disappeared, replaced by a twisted grin. ¡°Say, my beloved gambler, do you wanna see a magic trick? I can make your little friend go poof¡­ or boom, in this case.¡± Alrai laughed faintly, incorporating a bit. ¡°Don¡¯t move a single hair. I am a maiden very faint of heart, get scared easily and pull triggers even more easily. ¡± ¡°Alright alright, I¡¯m keeping still, my fair lady.¡± They stared at each other for a while. ¡°Why aren¡¯t you going poof like the other combatants?¡± She ended up asking. ¡°I haven¡¯t surrendered and can still fight, obviously.¡± ¡°What are you waiting for? I have won. Surrender already.¡± ¡°Nope.¡± The hell you mean no?! She wanted to scream. ¡°Want me to detonate the paper figurine?¡± ¡°You said you would do that IF I moved, which I¡¯m not doing. You want to be a ¡®nice¡¯ mage.¡± He said the nice part with a corny tone. ¡°Wanna say that again?¡± ¡°No miss. But it seems we¡¯ve hit a standstill.¡± ¡°Because you¡¯re being a petty ass loser. I can use a second paper figurine and blow your face.¡± ¡°Then you better hope it knocks me out, because I¡¯ll use that to escape this little one¡­ And I¡¯ll get back to you.¡± I haaate gamblers. Velvet cursed. Was she just supposed to leave Alrai here and run? He would just chase her down. Wait for another mage? They may just use that to take both of them. She really didn¡¯t want to ¡®blow his balls¡¯. She may hate his sister, but this was a professional arena, and she¡¯d been warned against trying to really harm another mage. Velvet wanted money, not problems. And now she had a problem with a punchable face. ¡°Why do these things feel wet?¡± Alrai complained. ¡°Shut up, just think it¡¯s Ethra playing with your balls.¡± Velvet massaged her temples, already tired of dealing with the damn Siberetti. ¡°You have no idea of the things Ethra does to my balls.¡± That made something, or someone, snort, hidden behind the fallen plants. Velvet flinched a bit, but¡­ ¡°Don¡¯t move, be a good bait and get beaten for me okay?¡± She planned on leaving Alrai there, watching from a distance, but her necklace vibrated. Alrai also received the message, almost scoffing when he saw Velvet¡¯s face change, her eyes shining with greed. ¡°Are you really that cheap?¡± I would have teamed up with you for less¡­ ¡°Shut up, you silver spoon idiot. Let''s beat that scavenger!¡± The poor hiding mage got hit twice, first with the weakening charms that were still buried, and then with Alrai¡¯s own hands. Chapter 40. Distraction Once the enemy mage disappeared between the smoke, Velvet looked at Alrai, thinking. He looks in a bad state already, and using all those spells in succession tired him out even more. Mages that fought in direct combat were very powerful, but they tended to run out of steam and magic very fast. On the opposite, support (or debuffer) mages like Velvet carried and used diverse items and charms to maintain a good state for a longer time. The magic needed to use and make charms was very little, and the only thing she did that used more magic was exploding her paper figurines. Alrai still tried to look good and dandy, a smirk on his lips. She spoke. ¡°How does the money from winning a battle get distributed if we are two?¡± ¡°It splits in half.¡± Velvet''s look towards him became slightly dangerous, so Alrai raised his hands. ¡°Hold your horses, teaming up is better in the long term. Or were you really planning on fighting everyone on your own?¡± ¡°Velvette versus the world.¡± He mocked. Why are you making my name longer¡­? ¡°I wasn¡¯t planning to. Just winning enough money for stuff it¡¯s fine for me.¡± Still, she had the Skull of desire, who, matched with Alrai¡¯s own passive abilities, made them become the metaphorical version of a light in the dark. They possibly had to fight everyone else, and, since Velvet didn¡¯t care about victory, only benefits, the longer she could drag Alrai to fight, the more she would end up winning. ¡°I¡¯m going to dig up my stuff. Help me.¡± ¡°Shouldn¡¯t I watch for ambushes instead?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t trust you enough for that. Start digging, comrade.¡± Velvet made it so that she was digging the charms in the safest zones, controlling Alrai¡¯s movements, and Alrai the ones in the most difficult to control zones. Never trust a Gambler. They worked in silence, and ended up catching another stray mage, who stepped on a still buried weakening charm. ¡°Tough luck buddy.¡± Said Alrai, before swiftly dispatching them. Velvet saw him moving his foot over something. ¡°Stop, give me that.¡± She extended her hand, like she did when the kids grabbed a lizard or some fancy bug. ¡°Oh? Are you now even stealing spoils?¡± ¡°If it¡¯s not dangerous for me, I¡¯ll give it back.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not dangerous.¡± He saw Velvet not lowering her hand. ¡°Miss you¡¯re treating me too roughly.¡± She still didn¡¯t lower her hand. ¡°This is clown abuse.¡± ¡°You are not a clown, you are the entire circus. Gimme that.¡± Alrai scoffed, before kicking something in her direction. It was a piece of wood. Velvet picked it, turning it around. Some words were written. Velvet¡¯s mouth twitched, and she looked at Alrai. He made a noise, before starting to laugh like crazy. ¡°Hahahahaha! Oh, you should¡¯ve seen your face!¡± He dodged when Velvet threw the piece of wood to him. I¡¯m really going to blow him up¡­ ¡°Let¡¯s move out, we have mages to hunt.¡± ¡°Ladies first.¡± Alrai made an exaggerated motion with his arms. You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. ¡°After you.¡± Velvet mimicked his movement. ¡°After me.¡± They started walking, and Velvet sent two figurines behind her, to warn against surprises. A few notices sounded here and there on her necklace, of the fights that happened. Velvet used the few minutes of calm to make charms of the Gambling Paradigm. Not for her, since the risk of losing was big, but for Alrai, in case they found a strong opponent. If, IF he behaved. The Knowledge Paradigm was specialized in playing a supportive role, so it was stupid to let some¡­ difference in morality prejudice her skills. Velvet could play solo, but she definitely shined as a team player! That¡¯s what she told herself, at least. Also, the more Alrai lasted, the more benefits she would get. So supporting him was a long term plan. So what if he¡¯s Ethra¡¯s¡­ whatever their relationship is. As long as it benefits me, I¡¯ll even team up with Siberina! ¡­ Well, maybe not, depends. I still should get ready to get rid of him, gamblers like backstabbing too much. ¡°What are you scraping back there?¡± He asked, stopping whistling. ¡°Something to betray you later, do you have any preference? I take requests.¡± ¡°Not hitting my face, or my crotch.¡± ¡°You do have a very punchable face¡­¡± ¡°Yes, he definitely does¡­¡± Someone softly hissed in front of Velvet¡­ and behind Alrai. Both of them jumped in different directions, away from the stranger. The stranger, a woman with sharp eyes, sharp nails and sharp¡­ everything, actually, seemed to uncoil herself from the ground and part of the wall, until towering over them, at more than two meters and half. Velvet flinched, she had no idea about what Paradigm she was from. The long woman looked at Velvet, licking her lips with a long, sharp tongue. ¡°A fellow Ophidia, cute. Not that it will help you now.¡± Ophidia? Champion? Thanks for the warning, I guess¡­ ¡°Oh, madam, was I waiting for you!¡± Alrai shouted, extending his arms. ¡°My ticket to recovering my ranking.¡± ¡°Sh-sh-sh¡± The woman laughed. ¡°Cute Alrai, always so feisty.¡± Feisty, yes, cute¡­ I guess there¡¯s tastes for everyone. ¡°Yes to both of those. Now, check this out.¡± He extended his hands, but this time he made them face down. Vibora turned her body all the way, facing him. Boom! She crouched, first dodging Velvet¡¯s figurine that exploded next to her head, and then crawling up the wall, making Alrai¡¯s knife cut miss. ¡°Putting yourself just in the middle of the moment we were having¡­¡± Velvet caressed her face with a fake, disappointed sigh. ¡°Overconfidence only looks good on me, you know?¡± Vibora scoffed at that, just before using a tendril that came from her body to hit Alrai, who had sneaked close to her. Alrai rolled on the ground, and then he raised three fingers at Vibora. She squinted, not wanting to fall in another tra- Boom! The tendril she used to kick Alrai exploded, another figurine gone. Six remaining. Velvet thought. Vibora hissed, deciding to crawl all the way up, away from them. ¡°C¡¯mon, don¡¯t be a bad sport. Get down here.¡± Alrai mocked, getting close to Velvet. ¡°What do you know about her?¡± She asked. ¡°She¡¯s a friend of my father.¡± Velvet¡¯s mouth twitched at that. Vibora started¡­ mutating, her body becoming brack tendrils that covered the ceiling, and started running down the walls. A hissing sound surrounded them, and then, the tip of the tendrils parted, a mouth, fangs and eyes on every single one of them. There were around a hundred snakes¡­ Until something rang, and they became half. A penalty? So she has an Esca more open than us¡­ That meant more experience. ¡°We need to take her head to get rid of those.¡± Alrai whispered in her ear. ¡°So? Do I distract her and you knock her out?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t trust me nowhere enough for that, dear. So get up there, or get her down here, but you¡¯re the one doing the coup de grace.¡± Velvet scoffed, before giving a stack of charms to Alrai. ¡°They are luck charms. Use them to your own discretion.¡± ¡°Oh, I just love being pampered!¡± He laughed, before activating a few and jumping at Vibora¡¯s tendrils, chopping some of them with his knife. Velvet looked upwards, towards the dark center from where the snakes were being born. She had made a few charms with the two dream symbols, and she was ready to use them. Chapter 41. Victim Having seen the penalty taking effect, Velvet wondered about how effective they could be now. Even then, they should first get Vibora down. Velvet didn¡¯t fly, after all! Vibora''s plan was obvious. She had made a mistake by being prideful, appearing between them, and getting attacked on two fronts at once. Now, being up in the ceiling, she could control both of their positions. Six paper figurines weren¡¯t enough to detonate the ceiling. Velvet looked up again, realizing something. Vibora liked the dark, or at least she had picked a very badly illuminated place. She sent her figurines to help Alrai, exploding whenever a snake got too close. And she ran away, to where Vibora couldn¡¯t reach. ¡­ ¡°Look, your friend left you.¡± ¡°Do we look like friends?¡± Alrai backtalked, still on the ground. ¡°I can take you on my own.¡± ¡°Not in a fight.¡± The woman said, from inside that spiraling, coiling mess of snakes. A paper figurine tried to explode close to her face, but got easily slapped away, exploding against the wall. The remaining five also tried to get close before exploding. Alrai refrained his mouth from twitching. Did she leave them on autopilot? They weren¡¯t that dumb before. Maybe Velvet really did abandon him here. They weren¡¯t friends, or on friendly terms. Oh, whatever, I have won quite a few points already¡­ But a last gamble goes a long way! Vibora saw Alrai laughing alone. She was aware of the Siberetti¡¯s infamous reputation. Everyone was. That only made her more wary of Alrai, since she didn¡¯t know what tricks he would pull when cornered. Better dispatch him now. She uncoiled her whole body, increasing her snake¡¯s length, and throwing them all at once to overwhelm him. Alrai jumped backwards, but he was surrounded by all sides. Cutting the ones that were blocking his movement to the side, a few managed to slither its way up to him, biting his legs and shoulders. He rolled on the floor to remove them, even when that made him tear a few skin pieces. Vibora squinted, feeling a dark pleasure raise over her body. She licked her lips. Even when Siberettis didn¡¯t scream, harming them made any mage happy. Click. A lonely paper figurine teleported itself to Vibora¡¯s face. She was going to hit it, when it started sparkling. Having made her body become snakes, and sending them to Alrai, she had no hands to cover her eyes. Vibora screamed. It was too much light, too soon! Her body curled instinctively, almost falling down. Nine more figurines appeared close to her, also starting popping colorful, blinding lights uncontrollably. Even closing her eyes did nothing to protect them. The lights had some sort of magic that made them unable to be blocked. She decided to escape, throwing her body to the floor and crawling away. But then, something activated when she hit the ground, and she felt herself chained down. The lights barely let her see anything more than silhouettes, but that was enough to see someone walking leisurely towards her. She felt the person using some paper things. Strengthening charms, she guessed. She saw Velvet use one. Then two. Three, four. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. At the fifth one, Vibora almost flinched. Aren¡¯t those too many?! She tried to escape, to no avail. Whatever was holding her down, was stronger than her. Six, seven. Eight, nine. Stop already, do you want to kill me?! Ten. The first thing she felt was the chaining spell turning off. The second, was a kick to her torso, that sent her flying to the wall, almost making her part of it. The third was getting the knockout, losing and disappearing. ¡­ Alrai coughed between gasps for air, supporting himself against the wall. He was not a night lover like Vibora, so the lights didn¡¯t affect him that much. He still kept his eyes closed, taking a deserved rest. Maybe he will just go on and disappear too. ¡­ Something was pinching and pulling his cheek. ¡°Is this how you wake your prince up?¡± ¡°You are no prince. Where¡¯s your castle?¡± Velvet kept doing that until Alrai opened his eyes. ¡°You¡¯re mean, woman.¡± ¡°I have some charms to stop bleeding, but only if you can keep going.¡± She didn¡¯t want to waste materials, after all. ¡°And cruel, have I said that already?¡± He looked at Velvet, who was crouched in front of him, holding her chin up with one hand, and pulling his cheek with the other. ¡°Go on, patch me up. I won¡¯t leave happy if I don¡¯t kick you at least once.¡± ¡°That¡¯s the spirit!¡± She started patching him up. ¡°The hell did you do? Agh, that thing looks awful.¡± She poked something. ¡°That thing is my face. And I am very good looking, thank you so much.¡± ¡°Does your grandma tell you that? Awawawa!¡± She winced when Alrai pinched her waist. ¡°Oi! I¡¯m nursing you for free here!¡± ¡°For free you say.¡± He still reclined back, letting Velvet patch his wounds. ¡°By the way¡­ what is an Ophidia? Vibora called me that.¡± Alrai gave an exaggerated sigh. ¡°I cannot even rest in peace¡­ Don¡¯t pinch! Well, long history short, some mages wanted to have an exclusive club for being little special boys.¡± ¡°Guess you were not invited?¡± ¡°Damn straight. Who doesn¡¯t want me? No one, I¡¯ll tell you. Continuing. Those mages think that a true, real mage needs to have eaten one demon at least, to be closer to the Primordial or whatever. An Ophidia is just someone whose first demonic snack was a snake.¡± ¡°They don¡¯t even call themselves a special term, they use ¡®True Mages¡¯ to call themselves. A bunch of narcissists.¡± ¡°Someone is cranky for not being in the special guys club.¡± ¡°Do you know how hard it is eating a demon? Catching them outside their pocket dimensions is a rare occurrence, and if you get one, selling it is usually more rewarding.¡± He felt Velvet¡¯s gaze change upon hearing that. ¡°A million auris, and sometimes more. They sell by bidding.¡± ¡°Hey! Don¡¯t cry over me now!¡± ¡­ It took Alrai five minutes to somewhat recover a bit of energy. During that time, some more notices were appearing. Velvet counted them to cope. Unless someone just spent the whole time hiding, there were fifteen fighters. One was defeated by Alrai, two by her, three by both of them, including a Champion. With them, those counted eight. Some notices of defeated mages had sounded during that. Velvet counted five. Three of those were defeated by the same players. The team of . So, if there were only fifteen fighters, only four of them remained. Velvet, Alrai and those two. ¡°Can you take one final battle?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°We will ambush them.¡± Alrai wasn¡¯t in a good state, Velvet noticed, and she wasn¡¯t going to lose money because he was prideful. ¡°Go bury some seeds and charms.¡± Velvet gave him a few of each. ¡°What will you do?¡± ¡°Craft more charms, I¡¯m going to use all the materials I¡¯ve grabbed. Let¡¯s explode those two.¡± ¡­ After they had an extremely well built corner, they waited. It seemed some watchers were getting bored, since they offered money for them to move. It pained Velvet, but building all those traps took too much time to just undo it, so she refused. After a while, which worked nicely for them since it helped Alrai recover, steps were heard. ¡°They are over here¡­¡± A feminine voice sounded. ¡°I can feel some traps.¡± ¡°Hm, only weak mages fight like this. I expected more for the ones that defeated the Champion, but it seems I was mistaken.¡± I know that voice¡­ She didn¡¯t even stop Alrai from going out, waving his arms around. ¡°Hahahaha! Oh, this is great! We met again! This is truly destiny!¡± Igern made a disgusted sound. ¡°I knew it was you, using your name like an imbecile.¡± ¡°Maehdon¡­¡± Velvet said. ¡°Or are you Creftalia?¡± ¡°I¡¯m Creftalia¡­¡± The girl said. ¡°And¡­ It¡¯s also my name¡­¡± She seemed sad at being called part of the imbeciles that used their names by Igern. ¡°Damn, what an asshole, you bully your poor teammate?¡± Alrai said. ¡°Yeah, zero shame, no wonder she looks like being kidnaped.¡± Velvet added, nodding. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you poor lady, we will rescue you from that petty, ugly, resting bitch face syndrome!¡± ¡°It¡¯s¡­ It¡¯s not like that¡­¡± The poor, unwilling victimized damsel in distress said in a low voice. ¡°I am really going to beat you two into a coma.¡± Igern said, pissed at them already. Chapter 42. I can hear you The appearance of Igern awoke the flames inside them. Losing to a stranger was one thing, but they definitely didn¡¯t want to lose to him. He looked like an insufferable winner! They were also insufferable winners, but hey, better was the evil known! Also, having bragging rights over Igern looked too tempting to pull any stop. He needed to go down. Igern seemed to notice the hungry gazes, grimacing. ¡°You two are really¡­¡± He sighed, before proudly composing himself. ¡°I will show you what someone personally picked by the High Queen of Arhontissa is able to do.¡± ¡°Careful with what you say, it¡¯s gonna look soooo bad once you lose.¡± ¡°Yeah, it also makes you sound soooo full of yourself.¡± Igern¡¯s brows frowned, and he looked slightly towards Creftalia. ¡°They are right, you know¡­ If we lose it¡¯s gonna be so embarrassing¡­¡± She said softly. Igern made a ¡®tsk¡¯ noise. ¡°I will not lose against you two!¡± ¡°Damn, he is saying ¡®I¡¯ when there¡¯s two of them¡­¡± ¡°Poor girl, I feel so bad for her¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine, really¡­¡± Creftalia tried to defend her honor¡­ or Igern¡¯s, at this point she was confused. ¡°Enough!¡± He shouted. ¡°I¡¯m done with your babbling!¡± He raised his arm, bringing it down with force. An ice spear formed in his hand, which he used to command a frozen rain against them. It was when Velvet saw his frozen rain become affected by the penalty, that she realized Igern was stronger than them. Outside the Arena, at least. Creftalia used some charms to recover the rain¡¯s lost potency, but Igern scolded her. ¡°You stay back, this is personal!¡± She retreated back, looking down. ¡°Boo! You suck!¡± Alrai shouted, before ducking to evade an ice spear to the face. ¡°Damn, he really put us on a siege.¡± Velvet had used some plants to build a wall, but, without getting closer to Igern, they wouldn¡¯t defeat him. It seemed the rain used Igern¡¯s as a source, so it didn¡¯t fall right on top of them. Even then, it was slowly chipping away the plants. Alrai was the first to notice the rain changing direction, turning and kicking Velvet away. Before she had time to complain, an ice spear stabbed the place where she was before, being handled by Igern. He is fast! She rose from the floor, noticing that Igern¡¯s gaze was fixated on her. ¡°I always take down the support first.¡± He warned¡­ threatened her, twirling the spear in his hand. Velvet threw him the chaining charm, but Igern jumped away, looking at it with disgust. So he knows about it¡­ damn. He then blocked Alrai¡¯s knife with the spear, a few chunks breaking down. Alrai had gotten ¡®lucky¡¯ and hadn¡¯t been noticed by Igern until almost stabbing him. Alrai raised his foot, and kicked Igern¡¯s crotch with enough force to push him back. Velvet found it strange how he barely reacted, until Alrai laughed. ¡°Are you wearing a damn protector?¡± ¡°Of course, lowly mages like you tend to use those pathetics tricks.¡± ¡°I need to get one of those.¡± Alrai ended up saying. ¡°I did end up grabbed by the balls back there.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t care about your personal life.¡± Igern tried to stab him again, but Alrai was slippery. Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°C¡¯mon dude. We are bonding.¡± He was going to retort when an explosion distracted him. Especially since it wasn¡¯t close to him. ¡°You!¡± Now even more angry, he turned to look at her. ¡°I always take down the support first.¡± She mocked his previous words. Igern clenched his teeth, boiling with rage. He would¡¯ve done the same, but being the one at the end of the defeated support bothered him. And Velvet''s reasoning was clear. If they managed to corner Igern, Creftalia was sure to intervene, ruining their hard work. Never underestimate an opponent, no matter how weak they may seem. If not, one could end up like Cornelius. Also, having Creftalia there distracted them, since she was an unknown variable. So she had to go down. Velvet saw Igern running towards her, spear ready. Stopping suddenly, he jumped before stepping on a chaining charm, and then turned to block Alrai¡¯s knife. Hit by hit, he alternated between blocking Velvet¡¯s explosions and Alrai¡¯s attacks, also having to make sure not to step on any trap. He really wasn¡¯t joking about his strength¡­ If it wasn¡¯t for the penalties and the fact that we are ganging up on him, on a terrain full of traps, we would lose. It almost makes me feel bad. She felt the difference in skill between him and Vibora. Igern was much stronger. Even then, Velvet kept on attacking and supporting Alrai with charms whenever she could. Igern started to get tired, panting every now and then, making a few mistakes that ended up getting him harmed. ¡°You two really¡­¡± He gasped when Alrai got in a lucky punch, shattering his ice spear and slamming him against the wall. ¡°I would love to say that we won, but I¡¯ll be good and do it once you go poof.¡± ¡°I will get you two for this¡­¡± Igern panted a few more times, before sliding down the wall and to the floor. Not relaxing, Velvet looked at his long black hair falling in disarray, and at his features. ¡°When he doesn¡¯t look at you as if you owed him money, he is kind of good looking¡­¡± She felt Alrai looking at her. ¡°I know right?!¡± ¡°Your tastes don¡¯t count, you probably have a thing for prideful bastards.¡± Alrai grinned. ¡°I know right?!¡± ¡°I. Can. Hear. You.¡± Igern said, still not fainted, making them almost jump. ¡°I take it back, it only works until you open your mouth.¡± Velvet got a paper figurine ready, but Igern seemed to really faint at that moment, disappearing. She waited no time before taking a few steps away from Alrai, getting ready. ¡°It¡¯s now the time when we fight it out?¡± Alrai¡¯s grin grew, he looked ready to pounce on her. ¡°No, put the figurine down, if that was the case, no one would team up. We won.¡± He relaxed his fighting position. ¡°The money is still getting spli- Put that thing down already!¡± ¡°Ngh¡­ Okay, fine. But do a strange movement and I''ll flip.¡± She wasn¡¯t going to start trusting Alrai blindly. Not until she got paid. And also after getting paid, she wasn¡¯t trusting Alrai in her life. Velvet felt the maze changing, two doors growing in the walls. ¡°See you at the Mergifari.¡± Alrai gave his goodbyes, picking one door and leaving. Velvet entered the other, finding herself in a clean room. Two other persons, who ended up being nurses, ordered her to take a bath, and to return all the things she had grabbed, before taking care of her wounds. Velvet made sure to ruin the ones from her dream, not wanting anyone to copy them. Feeling renewed, Velvet went to another room, where the catgirl, Mirrs was her name, was waiting. ¡°Say~ Did you enjoy my Arena?¡± ¡°Depends, how much did I win?¡± ¡°Two individual victories, five team victories, one of which was a champion, and winning this battle¡­¡± She seemed to be counting. ¡°Don¡¯t forget the fifty auris for teaming with Alrai. Who even was that LoveandPeaceV guy?¡± ¡°I did not forget that! Our viewers'' identities are private, don¡¯t ask.¡± ¡°Not even for a Meet and Greet?¡± ¡°They weren¡¯t a fan of yours.¡± ¡°Damn, okay.¡± So they were Alrai¡¯s fan. Imagine if it was Ethra, hahaha. I doubt he would choose such a name, though. ¡°But someone did leave a message for you.¡± ¡°Oh really? Only a message? It¡¯s the sender¡¯s name also private? I would like to give my gratit-¡± ¡°It¡¯s from fighter Vibora.¡± Suddenly less interested, Velvet took the paper that Mirrs was holding out. On it, it was just written: ¡®September 7, Maneely¡¯. That was in two days. Well, she will make a decision later. ¡°425 auris.¡± Mirrs concluded, counting the money before giving it to Velvet, who counted it again. ¡°Beating a champion adds 50 auris, or 100 if you were alone, and winning is another 100, 200 if you were alone.¡± Velvet was aware that she alone couldn¡¯t have beaten Igern, so she wasn¡¯t that bothered. Teaming up with Alrai ended up being good for her. ¡°I enjoyed your Arena very much, miss Mirrs! Especially the room with free materials!¡± Mirrs flinched at that. ¡°I might even come back someday!¡± Like that, Velvet left, and Mirrs¡¯ smile twitched. ¡°I will put you first the next time¡­¡± Chapter 43. Container It was late, so Velvet went back to the hotel, to have dinner and sleep. After moving on the morning, and fighting previously, she was so tired she ended up falling asleep upon touching the bed. ¡­ Once again, she found herself in the dark. Looking at the chained man, Velvet started talking to the void. ¡°What even did you do to end like this?¡± ¡°Those sigils are very useful, but since they were made to hold you still, I can¡¯t help but wonder.¡± ¡°Did you have a fight with Them? It¡¯s strange that They didn¡¯t kill you.¡± She didn¡¯t know that much about Them, Andras Apolyon being the exception, and even then she barely knew the basic information. There was no reason to cry over that, though, since the Mergifari probably had books about Them. Velvet squinted, trying to get a better look at him. ¡°You never change, it''s as if you''re frozen in time¡­ Except for the fact that I can see your chest moving.¡± She really wanted to say Andras name, but she had to wait until being ready for another drop. ¡°Do you have any idea of how tempting that is? It¡¯s like putting a kid in a room with a puppy for eight hours and telling him to not touch it, or he will get punished.¡± ¡°Like, he knows he is getting punished, but it''s oh so tempting!¡± ¡°And that puppy looks so cute!¡± She sighed. ¡°I¡¯m really gonna get mad with desire if I keep looking at you.¡± ¡°I need the virtue that opposes greed¡­ Oh right, it¡¯s charity. Doesn¡¯t work here. Temperance, I need you.¡± ¡°Patience also works.¡± ¡°I need to have Tempetience. Yes.¡± The dream went on like that. ¡­ ¡°Hyde I¡¯m dying.¡± Velvet woke up feeling not rested at all. ¡°Figures. You were rolling over the whole room, muttering stuff.¡± Is that why she was on the floor? Her sides also hurt. ¡°You could¡¯ve tied me up with webs, cmon, my hair is all tangled now.¡± Getting up, she stretched for a few seconds, before going to the bathroom. Today, she wanted to buy, or at least look at the prices, of a salamander. The materials used yesterday did fill her with inspiration, and she knew that at least one thing from it worked great with her paper figurines. She had seen some ¡®pet¡¯ shops with Gertine and Nereus yesterday, but she wasn¡¯t interested back then, not entering any. There was also something she wanted to try. Stolen story; please report. ¡°Udulluay.¡± She called, waiting. The flutter of wings soon sounded in the room, and a black staff grew on the floor, where the owl perched. So he isn¡¯t limited to the market. ¡°You called for me.¡± ¡°Yes, I want to know what shop you recommend to buy a pet. A salamander, to be precise.¡± Velvet wasn¡¯t sure if asking that would bother the owl. Maybe he was just a supervisor, not a tour guide. ¡°Pets are a very high responsibility!¡± He screamed at her, flapping his wings. ¡°You do not only ¡®buy¡¯ a pet, you need to also buy a book about how to take care of them, food, a place they can stay in and things to keep them entertained!¡± ¡°Udulluay is a pet, and he is high maintenance!¡± He finished, putting his wings down. ¡°That¡¯s why I want you to tell me what shop sells all of that. I do not want anything to do with shady pet shop business.¡± That seemed to do the trick, since Udulluay made some noises, fully twisting his head. ¡°Horarcie¡¯s. You passed it yesterday.¡± ¡°Huh, do you watch what every single mage here does?¡± ¡°Udulluay watches over everyone.¡± ¡°Sounds like a lot of work.¡± ¡°There¡¯s a lot of Udulluay.¡± ¡°I have another question. What is Maneely?¡± ¡°A textiles shop.¡± ¡°No, I mean, someone told me to go there tomorrow. It¡¯s something happening there?¡± The owl turned his face upside down, looking at her. ¡°There¡¯s a private mage gathering for members of Devil¡¯s Taste. Once every two weeks.¡± ¡°What happens there?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a private gathering.¡± So she wasn¡¯t allowed to know more, got it. That was all she wanted to know. ¡°Uh¡­ Thanks for the help, I¡¯m going out now¡­¡± Velvet was expecting the owl to leave on his own, but he instead kept staring at her. ¡°Morpheus sells things from the Dream Paradigm.¡± Udulluay said, making Velvet freeze. She turned to fully face the owl, her heart skipping beats. ¡°Udulluay saw you having trouble sleeping.¡± She relaxed after hearing that. It seemed that he had seen her rolling around during the night, not that he knew about the chained man. Holding back a breath of relief, she nodded. ¡°I¡¯ll take a look.¡± The owl hummed. ¡°If you have any more questions after this, please search for Udulluay.¡± ¡°I am Udulluay. Every owl in the Mergifari is also Udulluay.¡± He took flight, disappearing into the wall. Velvet stared at the wall spot for a bit, then talked to her hat-dwelling companion. ¡°Hyde, how do you feel about me going to a gathering of demon eating mages?¡± ¡°I¡¯m curious as to what they do. Also, you keep forgetting something.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t forget anything, but I¡¯ll bite. What do you mean?¡± ¡°Given the chance, I would also eat a fellow demon.¡± Velvet chuckled nervously at that. ¡°I guess¡­ If they sell for that much, that only means they are worth that much.¡± ¡°And the Doyles only gave me some scraps¡­ They better be grateful.¡± She understood that they probably didn¡¯t have the money, so she wasn¡¯t that bothered. ¡°Still, I barely noticed some difference upon eating that snake, and the fact that I have more magic is because my Esca opened after that.¡± ¡°Ask that at the gathering, I¡¯m no human nor have I ever eaten another demon, so I¡¯m in the unknown. Maybe you just didn¡¯t realize.¡± ¡°It¡¯s tomorrow, don¡¯t rush me¡­Huh, if that gathering is at a textiles shop, do you think they have a new member''s discount there? I would like to buy some fire resistant clothes.¡± ¡°And a hat.¡± Hyde said. ¡°A fire resistant hat.¡± She agreed. Like that, she went towards Horarcie¡¯s pet shop. Unlike ¡®human¡¯ pet shops, who had cages for the animals, mage pet shops were filled with tiny black balls the size of a coin. Velvet remembered that Nereus had complained about his familiars being put inside containers, so she guessed it was something similar. The cloaked figures touched some balls for a few seconds, before either grabbing one and buying it, or going for the next. Velvet touched one. It was hard, made with something similar to glass. Feeling some images in her mind, she focused on those. It was an underwater scene, a dark, rocky cave, with strange seaweed growing in some places. Velvet saw something slithering inside the smaller holes, but didn¡¯t manage to fully see it. What she noticed was a bit of smoke coming from where the thing was hidden. Raising her hand from the ball, she read the text under it. Volcanic moray. Male, 4 years. 20 auris. There was also a longer text, detailing what kind of materials one could obtain from it, and also what kind of food it consumed. ¡°I don¡¯t know why Nereus complained, these containers look fantastic. Hyde, does your pocket dimension look similar?¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t you like to know.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be difficult, why so secretive?¡± ¡°Seeing a pocket dimension from the inside lets you see the magical formation that holds it together. That means you could just undo it from outside, collapsing it.¡± ¡°Look, touch that ball again.¡± Velvet did so, seeing once again the underwater cave. ¡°Now look at the borders, it has a fake border, the cave looks bigger than it is.¡± Velvet followed the order, seeing some symbols tangled with one another. ¡°Yes, you¡¯re right.¡± ¡°Now, if you wanted, you could disable them from outside, collapsing the pocket dimension, and having water, an angry eel and rocks on the floor.¡± ¡°And having to pay for damages.¡± ¡°That too. Continuing. With time, a mage specialized in formations could collapse it just from the outside, without seeing the inside. But, the act of knowing how it looks would save them a lot of time and work.¡± ¡°So, if you were to see my pocket dimension, if, IF you were kidnapped, mind controlled or something, whoever did it could just enter my pocket dimension in a blink. And you already know how edible demons are to mages.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± Velvet left the conversation at that, searching for a ball that said salamander. Chapter 44. Pet shop The balls were classified by habitat, and the salamander was with the fresh water and soil hybrids, together with frogs, some birds and a few more. ¡°Bomber frog¡­¡± Velvet read one out loud. ¡°That one sounds so badass¡­ And it eats the same as the fire salamander.¡± She had read various texts on different balls, and most small carnivores fed on ¡®All-purpose worms¡¯. Those sold at ten auris the ball with hundred, but, by feeding them anything, they reproduced, becoming a stable source of food. ¡°I don¡¯t want to become a farm¡­¡± She complained. ¡°Are you that sure? A true mage owns more than that.¡± The cloaked person next to her said. ¡°Really? Weren¡¯t some mages saying that a true mage was the one that consumed a demon?¡± ¡°That body fashion club? A bunch of losers.¡± The cloaked shadow, who Velvet guessed was the shop¡¯s owner, waved their hand with uninterest. ¡°Oof, that¡¯s harsh. What part of owning pets makes one a ''true'' wizard?¡± ¡°That¡¯s just the start. A true magician is one that can travel to the ends of the world having all needs covered. A whole moving workshop on themselves.¡± ¡°So,¡± Velvet continued. ¡°They need a whole alchemy lab, with a garden and a collection of magical beasts from which to obtain materials and food.¡± ¡°Exactly, even then, you¡¯re only focussing on magical needs. Transport, lodging, self care¡­¡± ¡°Hm, what do you sell for transportation?¡± ¡°I only deal with small beasts.¡± Before Velvet could say something, the owner continued. ¡°You¡¯re only interested in fire, amphibious beasts?¡± ¡°For the moment, yes. Unless you have something that mixes well with paper. Or something that gives me fairy dust.¡± ¡°Fairy dust comes from pixies, and those aren¡¯t considered beasts, but I have something similar.¡± ¡°Something that feeds on All-purpose worms?¡± Since she had to buy those already, at least they would be milked for all their worth. ¡°The Space-leaping toad. You can take some blood from it every ten days, and it works almost the same.¡± ¡°... How am I supposed to take the blood?¡± Was the owner implying she had to hold down a teleporting toad and cut it a bit? ¡°... Oh, you¡¯re very new.¡± They seemed to notice her lack of knowledge. ¡°These balls that hold them inside are made to take care of that. As long as you care for the ones inside, you only need to pick the materials once they¡¯re ready.¡± If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. ¡°And about feeding, does it also go automatically?¡± ¡°The All-purpose worms need to be fed from the outside, but anything works for them. The others, you can make a formation to connect them. Or pay someone to make them for you.¡± I don¡¯t know how to make formations. She thought for a bit. ¡°If I buy a fire salamander, a bomber frog, a space-leaping toad and one ball of All-purpose worms, can you include teaching me how to make that formation on the price?¡± ¡°Add another one from that shelf, and I¡¯ll include the step by step guide.¡± ¡°Why that shelf in particular?¡± ¡°They are the ones too difficult to sell.¡± That was just a fancy way to say old or sick. Velvet bit back the comment she was going to make. In the end she decided not to hold anything back. ¡°Do you sell those to anyone who asks for the formation?¡± ¡°Yep!¡± He said shamelessly. She went to look at the shelf, concluding that her previous guess was right. The contained creatures were old, hybrids, or had some deformities. ¡°Why are hybrids here?¡± ¡°They cannot reproduce.¡± Velvet had already noticed that the creature¡¯s price not only varied for age, but for gender too. It made sense, in case someone wanted to breed and raise them. Velvet looked at the hybrids, since she wasn¡¯t interested in breeding animals for now. A bicolored salamander, a spider with feathers, a snake with fish scales, a chinchilla covered in slime¡­ ¡°Choose the spider.¡± She heard Hyde speaking in her mind. ¡°Why? Are you lonely?¡± ¡°Spiders don¡¯t get lonely, don¡¯t be stupid.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be secretive then! Why do you want it?¡± ¡°The formation. It says you can collect the webs from it, so if you give it to me, I can copy the formation and collect my own webs. I could even gift some of them to you if you behave.¡± ¡°See? It was that easy. I always behave. I am the epitome of ladylike behavior!¡± She finished, going back to talk to the seller. ¡°I want the feathered spider.¡± ¡°Good choice!¡± He picked all the containers that Velvet had selected, putting them on the counter. ¡°A fire salamander, a bomber frog, a space-leaping toad, a feathered spider and one ball of All-purpose worms. 180 auris.¡± Feeling the pain of that number, Velvet paid. The owner pulled out some mechanism, a big box with a round magnifying glass on top, and two holes on the sides to insert the arms. ¡°Alright, come here. Look.¡± He grabbed the five balls, putting them inside the box. Grabbing the one with the All-purpose worms, he started explaining. ¡°This one is going to become the central piece, since it¡¯s gonna feed everyone. See these symbols?¡± He applied some magic, and, with the help of the magnifying glass, both him and Velvet could see the tiny symbols with ease. ¡°You grab this one, and stretch it. Then, you grab¡­ lessee¡­ the bomber frog, and join the extended symbol with this one. They are made to be sewed with magic, so we do that¡­ Are you getting it?¡± Velvet nodded, watching how he sewed the two balls. ¡°Prove it. Put the fire salamander now.¡± He took out his hands, beckoning Velvet to continue. She put her hand inside, applying some magic. The symbols appeared, and she started stretching the one that was supposed to connect them. ¡°Go slow, first learn the movements, you can practice them later.¡± Being corrected, Velvet started taking her sweet time threading the symbols. It''s similar to normal sewing, but using the mind instead, while the fingers keep the formation open. Once the two balls were joined by that magical thread, the owner spoke. "Now do the rest. Keep stretching that part and combine the remaining containers. Ideally, you want to make a bracelet." "I understand..." She kept chaining the balls. It seemed she was slow but steady, since the owner left her to do it alone and went to attend the other customers, until she obtained something that could be called a bracelet. "What''s this box called?" Once she was done, the owner came back to check. "A formation microscope." He seemed to think a bit. "Don''t bother buying one, though. Most shops already have them to be used when you need to install whatever you bought." He took and checked the bracelet, nodding. ¡°A bit clunky, but will hold.¡± He gave it back, not changing any part of Velvet¡¯s work. "Good to know." Velvet slid the bracelet onto her wrist, where it became affected by the concealment spell, becoming part of the cloak. Saying goodbye to the pet shop owner, Velvet decided to go see the alchemy shops. Maybe there was some sort of competition like the Arena, and she could see how it worked. This time she didn¡¯t plan on participating anyway, just observe the ones that did. Alchemy was not on her skill list, so, unless it was free to participate, she was sitting this one out. Chapter 45. Game Indeed, there was an alchemy competition, but with paid entry. Even then, looking was free. Since it wasn¡¯t any big tournament or similar, there weren''t that many watchers, which let Velvet observe from the front seats. The participants were crushing ingredients in a mortar, putting them in some glass beakers that were filled with a boiling, green colored solution. She went closer to a group of cloaked figures that were talking. Like similar places where there wasn¡¯t such a tight grip under the concealment spell, talking wasn¡¯t that restricted. ¡°The Four is the one that will win, I¡¯m telling you.¡± One of them said to the others. ¡°No, just look how she¡¯s handling the temperature. She¡¯s too careful. The Eight is the one winning.¡± ¡°No way, he messed up already in the mixing phase. Dried perororia eggs don¡¯t have to be grinded to dust.¡± ¡°They can, if you lower the fire temperature at mixing. Which he did.¡± ¡°What about the Six?¡± Velvet said, ¡°Seems like a real dark horse.¡± She had taken the two figures'' comments upon consideration, choosing the participant that didn¡¯t mess up yet. ¡°The Six¡­¡± They seemed to ponder for a bit, watching the competition. ¡°He is doing too much by the books¡­¡± ¡°Yes, he is not messing any step, but is neither doing anything remarkable. Not bad enough to fail, but not good enough to win.¡± Huh, so the way he¡¯s working is the basic? Good to know. ¡°What about the Three? She is my student.¡± A new voice added, joining the conversation. Even when the cloaked figurines looked and sounded the same, there was a certain tone of pride on those words. Velvet looked at that participant, comparing her actions to the other three. She didn''t find her bad, but not as good as the others. ¡°I prefer the Six. Going by the book can¡¯t be bad.¡± She decided, even when she really wasn¡¯t sure. ¡°Is she your student? You should''ve put her a bit more time in the oven. Too undercooked for a real competition.¡± One of them said. Instead of getting offended, the figure nodded. ¡°I know, but failure builds character. Having no competition back at home was making her too cocky.¡± ¡°Being cocky is good.¡± The other figure said. ¡°Imagine if she wins, her pride would become unstoppable.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t curse me.¡± Participant Three¡¯s teacher said. ¡°If she wins, I¡¯ll eat my alchemy set.¡± ¡°Better give it to me in that case.¡± Velvet said. ¡°Who are you cheering for?¡± ¡°Number Six.¡± ¡°If he finishes second, I¡¯ll give it to you.¡± ¡°Hey, not fair. I want in too.¡± One of the other figures said. ¡°Fine, fine. She¡¯s not winning anyway. Pick a number to be second.¡± ¡°The Four, obviously.¡± ¡°Since you all are playing, I¡¯m joining too. The Eight.¡± This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Like that, the competition¡¯s winner ended up becoming a second thought, the first now being who was going to end in second place. They kept silent after that, paying attention to the alchemists. Until Velvet felt one of the cloaked figures lean slightly towards her. "Say," They started saying. "Wanna change numbers?" "Eh?" She made a deliberate pause. "No, I''m fine with my choice." "It''s not gonna end up second. The Eight is gonna be the one ending second." She snickered. "Why change then? I''ll just take the loss." "Which of those has better skill at mixing? The Six or the Eight?" Velvet looked at the participants. Their mixing techniques were different, but as to which one was better¡­ she had no way of knowing at this moment. "The Six.¡± She answered with fake confidence. ¡°The Six is mixing in clockwise direction, using the Hasdrubal method. The Eight is using the Bramas method, going counter-clockwise. Do you know the difference? Not counting the direction.¡± Velvet looked at both competitors. She was a damned knowledge mage, she wasn¡¯t taking the loss that easy. ¡°Bramas method uses more heat, and the mixing is slower. The Hasdrubal method uses less heat, and the mixing is being done in a spiral motion.¡± ¡°That¡¯s just the visual explanation. Which one is better for dissolving perororia¡¯s eggs?¡± Velvet swallowed the groan that wanted to escape. She didn''t know! Why the need to keep pressing?! She looked at how the other participants were doing it. Most used the Hasdrubal method, still¡­ ¡°Bramas.¡± She didn¡¯t explain her answer, but seeing how the majority of competitors were using that method, made her feel like it was a trap question. The figure chuckled, reclining back. ¡°But the Six is using the Hasdrubal method.¡± I know that! At least tell me which one is better! ¡°He is going by the book.¡± She repeated what the cloaked figures said before. ¡°What book? ¡®Road to Alchemy¡¯? The one written by Bramas himself?¡± Velvet flinched at that. ¡°I guess¡­?¡± The figure didn¡¯t answer that, choosing to observe the competition again. Do not ignore me now! ¡°Why do you want to change numbers?¡± She ended up asking. ¡°Why? Do you want to change numbers?¡± The figure repeated, not answering her question. ¡°No. I want to know why you want the number of the one you think is not ending second.¡± ¡°I have no use for an alchemy set. You look inexperienced, and I like playing guess the Paradigm with novice mages.¡± He raised a finger, continuing. ¡°Why did you choose the Six? It was because we praised the skills of the Four and the Eight. Then you used the things we praised as base to find someone that also possessed those skills.¡± ¡°Hm, seems like it¡¯s a nice game.¡± Velvet confessed. ¡°It can be useful in certain scenarios. But targeting only novice mages is going to make it end up as a detrimental skill. Like stealing candy for a baby. Yes, it¡¯s easy, but no one lives only with candy.¡± ¡°Hahaha!¡± The figure laughed. ¡°True! Oh, but I¡¯m not doing this with ulterior motives, I-¡± ¡°That¡¯s what someone with ulterior motives would say.¡± She interrupted him. ¡°Eh, we are on the Mergifari. I cannot touch you without that owl kicking me out. And once you step out of here, tracking you is going to be impossible.¡± She thought for a moment. ¡°You''re right. Okay, let¡¯s play. I want to see how your deduction ends.¡± ¡°That¡¯s the spirit!¡± They seemed to like the idea. ¡°You are of a Paradigm that uses information. I¡¯ll bet it is either remembrance or knowledge.¡± ¡°I am from the Remembrance Paradigm, true.¡± She lied. She didn¡¯t know anything about that Paradigm, but if it sounded believable, the cloaked figure never had to find out. They continued. ¡°Now, what if we were just lying or making stuff up? Then all you guessed based on that information would be wrong. Therefore¡­¡± They seemed to think. ¡°Your Paradigm is very delicate on things you don¡¯t know. You should keep that in mind.¡± She did already realize that on the train, she didn¡¯t need someone reminding her. Hell, she only wanted to get some information about alchemy! ¡°Did you lie about those things?¡± If they had, she might have to change what she had understood as correct. The cloaked figure raised their fingers to their face, making a curve with the thumb and the index. Since the concealment spell didn¡¯t let them show any facial expression, it was a strange way of making a smiling face. ¡°Guess.¡± Chapter 46. Guess Velvet looked at the competitors for a bit. One of them seemed to fail on a step, the liquid inside the beaker exploding. He was going too slow, and mixing it in spiral motion. That¡¯s what made it explode. He tried to use both methods for mixing¡­ This situation almost made her remember when Siberina teached her the spell to ¡®solve¡¯ Iren¡¯s murder. She wasn¡¯t allowed to use magic now, but that experience taught her how to compare information. The way the competitors were mixing, boiling and tasting, worked in a similar way to the classification of Iren¡¯s stab wounds. She compared all the players equally now, not giving privileges to the three players that her temporary companions preferred. ¡°The number three moves very confidently¡­ but there¡¯s a bit of anxiety. She keeps looking at the public, probably trying to pinpoint her teacher. The Six is very fluid, but also mechanical, as if he was following instructions¡­¡± ¡°The Four and the Eight.¡± The cloaked figure pressed. ¡°Also fit with what you said. So you weren¡¯t lying about their skills.¡± ¡°That''s nothing surprising. Who do you think will win?¡± ¡°Not the Three, as much as it pains me.¡± She nibbled her lip. ¡°The Eight seems like the best bet¡­¡± ¡°Huh, really?¡± ¡°Yes, but the bet was only if the Three won, so there¡¯s no need to change numbers!¡± ¡°Well, I think the Three is going to win, and the Eight will be second.¡± ¡°Well, I hope you are wrong!¡± The cloaked figure hummed. ¡°Wanna bet?¡± That made Velvet flinch, turning to stare at them. ¡°Are you perhaps a gambler whose name starts with A or S?¡± ¡°Guess.¡± Stop trying to make me guess things¡­ ¡°I already had my turn guessing. Now it¡¯s yours.¡± The cloaked person looked at her for a few seconds. "You''re a girl, probably close to eighteen. And have no backing." "Huh. That¡¯s too specific. How can you see over the concealment spell?" "I did not. It''s experience, obtained with age." The figure waved his hand, downplaying their skills. "Okay, my turn. 30, male, receding hairline. Jobless." "I''m twenty-seven. And my hair is fine." He heard Velvet snicker. "You said that on purpose, didn''t you?" "And it worked. So I had two things right! You¡¯re indeed someone with a lot of free time!" The figure made a ¡®tsk¡¯ noise, but didn¡¯t seem very bothered. "You got me there, I''ll give you that." ¡°And with barely any experience, see? Aren¡¯t I awesome?¡± She tried to sound the most smug she could, having finally mocked the stranger. ¡°Don¡¯t be so-¡± If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. ¡°I¡¯m not done, I¡¯m not done! Let me explain my conclusion!¡± Velvet wasn¡¯t going to end it there, no, no, she wanted to rub it in his face. ¡°You see, since I tend to deal with people more skilled than me, my skills advance soooo fast. Perhaps, instead of playing with novice mages, you should target the ones at your level.¡± He laughed. ¡°Miss, you are very vindictive, has anyone told you that?¡± ¡°No, never. Everyone says I have exemplary behavior and mannerisms.¡± ¡°No we don''t.¡± Hyde said in her mind. ¡°I¡¯m sure of that.¡± He nodded. ¡°So, going back to the competition, are you giving up on getting a free alchemy set from our teacher there?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t give up on anything until the bell has rang. But once something is lost, I just move on easily.¡± ¡®Don¡¯t think too hard about it¡¯ was Velvet¡¯s life motto. She wasn¡¯t interested in overthinking things, and preferred moving forward instead of getting hung up on something. ¡°Not even if it¡¯s something worth fighting for?¡± ¡°Oh, then maybe yes. I just wouldn¡¯t think too hard about it.¡± She did find the Chained man something worth chasing, after all. ¡°Huh. The competition is in the final moments, you shouldn¡¯t miss it.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t miss anything, I have a perfect memory, after all.¡± ¡°So you are of the Knowledge Paradigm, not the Permanence.¡± Ah, shit. ¡°Ehe.¡± ¡°Do you even know the difference between those?¡± ¡°Nope. Look, look, they are almost done. Let¡¯s see if the Eight wins after all your bragging.¡± The final step seemed to be filtering the mixture, separating the liquid from the things that didn¡¯t fully mix. The participants seemed very equal on that step, Velvet guessed, comparing their movements. That meant the winner would be chosen based on the previous choices and the final result, which seemed to be an agility potion. ¡°Huh, why make a potion for increased speed when there¡¯s charms for that?¡± She asked. ¡°Guess.¡± Velvet almost shook him by the throat at that. ¡°Alright, alright, I¡¯ll answer that one. But start using your brain a little more.¡± He paused. ¡°How are charms made?¡± ¡°That¡¯s not an answer, it¡¯s another question¡­ Ah, fine. You draw sigils on paper and put magic on them.¡± ¡°How do sigils look?¡± Velvet raised a finger, and started tracing the sigil on the air, without using magic. It was then when she realized. ¡°Ah. Not all Paradigms can memorize the sigils.¡± It was kinda obvious, now that she thought, which made her almost embarrassed. There were a lot of sigils, and memorizing them was hard. ¡°Most mages pick the one or two that they find most useful, or take a grimoire with them, but it¡¯s a big waste of time. Alchemy is easier for non-information mages.¡± ¡°Why do information mages need to learn alchemy, then? Do not say guess.¡± ¡°Figure it out yourself.¡± Velvet didn¡¯t try to figure anything this time, just to see. She already had used some basic alchemy for her paper figurines, so she knew the answer already. ¡°Keep your secrets then.¡± The alchemists were at the finish line. Just a few moves more and¡­ ¡°Achoo!¡± Number Eight sneezed, ruining her potion. That made Number Six jump, which, even when it didn¡¯t ruin the potion as much, clearly caused some damages. ¡°Ah.¡± Velvet said, too stunned to speak. The time was over, and the results were announced. ¡°Number Three won, with Number Four second.¡± ¡°So, your apprentice really ended up winning.¡± The figure that was speaking with her companion at first said, some tingle of surprise in their voice. The professor sighed, even when they seemed very proud. ¡°She¡¯s going to become so insufferable¡­¡± Clearing their throat, they added. ¡°But, a bet is a bet, even after being won by a sneeze.¡± They took something from their robes, giving it to the winner. ¡°Wow, aren¡¯t I lucky?¡± The figure turned to look at Velvet¡¯s and her companion''s reactions. Velvet started laughing at that. She even clapped. ¡°Oh man, aren¡¯t you loved by fate? Hahahaha!¡± ¡°There¡¯s a casino just a few streets ahead, you should visit it right now!¡± He added, laughing too. ¡°... Aren¡¯t you two having too much fun after losing?¡± It barely felt like a victory, being laughed at so much! ¡°Do you know why?¡± Velvet started. ¡°No, but I want in on the joke.¡± ¡°Oh, that can be arranged, you just have to¡­¡± ¡°Guess.¡± Both of them said, laughing again. Chapter 47. Handy The figure looked at them expressionless, which disappointed Velvet. She was starting to understand why some mages joined the Arena just to see a normal face. ¡°I¡­ no?¡± The figure ended up saying. ¡°You¡¯re no fun.¡± He then leaned over to Velvet. ¡°Anyway, I¡¯m done here, but I had fun, so I¡¯ll give you something¡­ well, not me. I have a friend that has an alchemy set she doesn¡¯t use. I can present you to her.¡± Raising up, he started walking. ¡°Wait, wait!¡± Velvet went after him. ¡°Where?¡± ¡°Guess.¡± They went to the market street, so Velvet had to pay special attention to not lose him. ¡°... Hey now, I¡¯m not following a strange man anywhere. I¡¯m not that dumb.¡± Thinking a bit, she added. ¡°But Udulluay is supervising everything¡­¡± The flutter of wings sounded upon pronouncing the name. Udulluay appeared, flying until posing himself on the stranger¡¯s head. ¡°Ah.¡± Velvet tried to contain her laugh. ¡°Have you forgotten you have claws?¡± He complained, but made no motion to shoo him away. ¡°Udulluay is not pressing his claws.¡± ¡°Udulluay, can this man be trusted? He says he has a friend in a basement with a free alchemy set.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not what Udulluay heard him say. But Udulluay understands irony.¡± He separated his wings to balance himself better upon the man¡¯s head. The fact that Udulluay was so different from the cloaked figures made following them easier. ¡°Udulluay knows everything that¡¯s happening on the Mergifari. If someone were to break the rules, Udulluay would notice.¡± ¡°Even then, outside the Mergifari, you shouldn¡¯t follow strangers into basements.¡± The owl finished. ¡°I wasn¡¯t going to do that¡­¡± Velvet said, feeling scolded for something she wasn¡¯t going to do. The man grabbed Udulluay carefully, in a way it almost made her remember when the kids at the orphanage grabbed ducks to show them to her. That allowed Velvet to see the big claws that the owl had. It almost made her own head hurt. He then wrapped Udulluay under his arm, like a half hug, half hold. ¡°Here, a packaged owl.¡± He kept walking, carrying the owl. ¡°Are we even allowed to touch him¡­?¡± Udulluay didn¡¯t look too bothered, but Velvet wasn¡¯t sure of an owl¡¯s expressions. She did notice him opening and closing his empty claws slowly, which made her take a step back. ¡°Why? Do you want to carry him?¡± ¡°... No thanks.¡± He shrugged. They kept on walking for a while, until arriving at a shop with a closed door. The outside had gears and pipes making three words. Repairs and upgrades. ¡°Huh, I remember passing this shop days ago, but it was always closed. A friend said it was because of limited access.¡± Some shops had a list of clients, and didn¡¯t sell to anyone that wasn¡¯t already in one. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. ¡°She¡¯s almost always inside, but you need a password¡­ Here, hold the Udulluay.¡± He passed the owl to Velvet. ¡°W-wait!¡± She ended up grabbing him like a hamburger, while he started touching the gears and pipes. ¡°Do not drop Udulluay.¡± The owl said. ¡°I know¡­¡± She moved her hands to hold him better. ¡°Why are you so spongy¡­? I mean, is it fine if I hold you like this?¡± She saw Udulluay turning his face upside down, not answering the question. Hey now, it¡¯s not my fault, he gave you to me¡­ The door made some mechanical noises, opening. Velvet was going to give Udulluay back to him, but he entered the shop. ¡°That was on purpose, wasn¡¯t it?!¡± She followed suit, also entering. The shop was like the one Velvet visited the first day, but without exploding. There was a workbench in the middle, with some metal pieces on top. There were also parts, gears and tools on it, with some on the floor. They were classified by size, from real big tools that Velvet would need two hands to lift, to tools so small she needed an augmentation glass to manage using them. A voice rang deep in the shop. ¡°Who is it now? I have no appointments until tomorrow.¡± ¡°Guess.¡± ¡°So it¡¯s you. What have you done now?¡± He really does the guess thing all the time¡­ A figure came toward them, putting a wrench on the table. ¡°... Who is this? Say guess and you¡¯re eating the wrench.¡± ¡°It¡¯s free labor.¡± ¡°Not free, you said I would get an alchemy set.¡± Velvet intervened. ¡°... And you followed a stranger to a place just for that? Do you know how dangerous that is?¡± ¡°... You¡¯re the third person to tell me that. And I was the first. I did it because I had Udulluay.¡± She raised the owl, showing it to the mechanic. ¡°... Why are you carrying him like that?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. He is not really complaining¡­¡± ¡°Udulluay only complains when a rule is broken.¡± The owl said. The mechanic looked at Velvet in silence, before shaking her head. ¡°Anyway, I don¡¯t need help.¡± ¡°She¡¯s from the Knowledge Paradigm.¡± He started. ¡°And you only need to give an alchemy set that you aren¡¯t using.¡± That made the figure stop, seemingly pondering for a bit. ¡°... Knowledge Paradigm, huh¡­ That¡¯s handy.¡± ¡°I am also a very diligent worker.¡± Velvet said. She didn¡¯t mind working for something, also, she could learn some crafting skills. ¡°As long as I get the alchemy set before the Mergifari¡¯s opening, I¡¯m fine.¡± ¡°I need to search for it first¡­ Where are you going?¡± ¡°Hm? My job here is done, I¡¯m going to eat.¡± The man said, already at the door. ¡°You have no job¡­ Huh, food.¡± She seemed to remember something, and the man used that to get away from the shop. ¡°You haven¡¯t eaten anything in twelve hours.¡± Udulluay said. ¡°I can cook something if there¡¯s a kitchen here.¡± Velvet offered, finally deciding on setting Udulluay on the clear part of the table. ¡°On the second floo- Aren¡¯t you being too casual about this? Being put to work suddenly?¡± ¡°Hm? Oh, I guess it may seem so. But I prefer to be doing something than to be waiting, I get bored easily.¡± Velvet climbed the stairs, going to the kitchen. ¡°Also I was getting lonely, so having some place to visit everyday doesn¡¯t bother me.¡± Compared to the workshop, it was very small, but at least there were enough ingredients to cook. ¡°Carrots, beans, lamb¡­ Oh, you even have spices!¡± ¡°I guess¡­ Ugh, don¡¯t make me say that word. I¡¯m going to search for some blueprints for you to memorize, I have some repairs that are becoming a shameful presence¡­¡± ¡°And find the alchemy set!¡± ¡°Do not rush that much, first show me how you work.¡± ¡°Well, you only have to explain things to me once, for starters! Just tell me what tool is what and for what is used, the following steps I can learn by watching you!¡± ¡°Do not be so cocky, Knowledge Paradigm means you can get the theory part down with ease, but practice is another whole other thing.¡± ¡°I know I know. I won''t disappoint you!¡± Chapter 48. Snake The rest of the day was busy. At first, the woman, who told Velvet to call her T (that wasn''t her real name, but it made it easier for them to communicate under the concealment spell), gave her a few blueprints to make copies of. While doing that, she kept interrupting Velvet and made her bring the tools she needed to use to do her job, making her go back and forth in the shop. T wasn¡¯t very talkative, seeming to prefer working on silence, which was hard for Velvet. So, she went to speak with Hyde. ¡°So, how is it going inside there?¡± ¡°Those blueprints look interesting, ask if she has more.¡± ¡°Wait until I finish these copies first¡­ Still, these blueprints are very mechanical, not enough magic to be considered artifacts¡­¡± ¡°Crosstip screwdriver, small.¡± T said. Velvet stretched before going for it. ¡°Say, it is getting late, I¡¯ll go make dinner for you and leave.¡± ¡°M-hm.¡± She took the screwdriver, not looking at her. ¡°Also, I got invited to a reunion of Devil¡¯s Taste tomorrow. I want to go, so I¡¯ll take some part of tomorrow free.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± ¡°Also I finished making copies of four blueprints already, there¡¯s only two remaining.¡± ¡°Good.¡± Velvet¡¯s smile twitched. ¡°Do you have any preference for dinner?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°So I can guess?¡± The use of that word made T lift her head to look at her. ¡°Kid¡­¡± ¡°Okay, okay! I just wanted to see if you were listening! ¡­ So, you have a lot of clientele¡­ Do you know anything about Devil¡¯s Taste members?¡± ¡°Ask Udulluay.¡± Velvet saw Udulluay still on the table, who seemed to be preening himself. Has he been here the whole time? ¡°He said it was private.¡± ¡°Udulluay said that what happened at the gathering was private.¡± The owl corrected her. ¡°I meant his opinion. He did have problems with former members.¡± The owl made strange noises upon hearing that. As if he was clicking his beak. ¡°C did too, now that I remember. He didn¡¯t tell the details, but it was outside the Mergifari.¡± C was the name T used to refer to the man that brought Velvet here. ¡°What kind of problems?¡± ¡°They made connections with mages inside the Mergifari, and hunted them once they exited it.¡± Ah. ¡°Wait, shouldn¡¯t you have warned me a bit when I told you I was going?¡± T shrugged at that. ¡°Advising someone against doing something only makes them want to do it more. If you¡¯re dumb enough to let someone that you know eats demons follow you, at that point it''s natural selection speaking.¡± ¡°Now, that¡¯s too mean, sometimes it is inexperience speaking. I barely knew they existed, and eating demons and hunting mages are different things¡­¡± The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. Velvet remembered Iren and Cornelius. One had hunted the other for its demon. ¡°... Wouldn¡¯t that make leaving the Mergifari dangerous for any mage?¡± She remembered the wandering mages that had warned her against becoming one, and the comment of the pet shop owner. All the mages she had known were alone, unless they formed part of a family. And even then, Cornelius had put faith on a mage outside his family, and ended up dying for that. ¡°... It is dangerous.¡± Velvet answered her own question. For wandering mages, only the Mergifari was really safe, and, outside the month preceding the Selection, only official mages, official shops and the selected apprentices were allowed to remain there. Velvet let out a shaky breath. ¡°Mage society is really messed up¡­¡± T let out an emotionless laugh. ¡°That¡¯s what people who are not born in a mage society tend to say.¡± ¡°Your shop doesn¡¯t have the official seal.¡± Velvet said. ¡°What will you do after the Selection?¡± ¡°I am a Selector.¡± T said. ¡°I¡¯ll go inside to teach.¡± ¡°Oh, I see.¡± It took Velvet a few seconds to process what she had said. ¡°Wait, really?! ¡­ Have you already picked someone?¡± ¡°Calm down¡­ You don¡¯t want to work as a mechanic, do you?¡± That made her let out a nervous laugh. ¡°I¡­ do not.¡± ¡°Search for a Selector that needs what you offer.¡± ¡°Someone told me knowledge mage places were a bit full already. But someone also told me I could become a political pawn, so I guess it¡¯s even.¡± ¡°Oh, I know who you are now.¡± T said. ¡°Am I really that famous?¡± Velvet would like to blush upon receiving such a compliment, but the concealment spell made that useless. ¡°Not you, get down that high horse. But the man that recommended you is.¡± ¡°How famous is he?¡± She knew Kartal was a Selector, and member of the Scales of Poine, but she didn¡¯t know how important he truly was. ¡°Captain famous.¡± Velvet was taken a bit aback, but didn¡¯t comment more, since T didn¡¯t seem like the talkative type. ¡°Oh, that works for me. Is C also a Selector?¡± That made T laugh, and even Udulluay stopped preening and turned to look at her. She laughed for a time longer than needed, in Velvet¡¯s humble opinion. ¡°Only in name, and not even in that.¡± ¡°Am I what now?¡± Someone had entered the shop at that moment, almost sneakily. ¡°Guess.¡± Velvet said. ¡°I bring you food, and you try playing me at my own game? No dessert for you.¡± ¡°But I wasn¡¯t the one laughing!¡± She defended herself from the no dessert threat. ¡°Oho, what did you bring?¡± ¡°Guess.¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to kill both of you if you keep that up.¡± T threatened. ¡°Just put the food somewhere.¡± ¡°A¡¯ight, Udulluay, move.¡± He patted the owl away, until he hopped on Velvet¡¯s chair. Then, he put a few wood boxes in his place. There are other chairs, cmon¡­ T also left what she was doing, going to the table that was almost full of blueprints and boxes now. ¡°Let me clean first, don¡¯t get food on the blueprints!¡± Velvet hurried to take away the stuff, or at least set it to the side. ¡°Wait, let me store the finished ones, no use leaving them here.¡± T looked at the papers, classifying them how she saw fit and taking them away. ¡°Oh, right.¡± Velvet turned towards C. ¡°Did you have a problem with the members of Devil¡¯s Taste? One of them invited me to a reunion tomorrow.¡± ¡°Hm? Did I?¡± He seemed to think. ¡°It must¡¯ve been years ago, I don¡¯t remember.¡± ¡°Six years ago, from the time you ran away.¡± T said, almost mocking. ¡°Hm¡­ Perhaps? I was wild back then¡­ It sounds like something I did on a whim.¡± ¡°Everything you do is based on whims.¡± ¡°She is right about that.¡± Velvet and Udulluay said. ¡°Isn¡¯t the fact that you are working here a whim?¡± ¡°And I do appreciate your whimsical nature mister!¡± The table was now clean, and, since none of the other two were doing much, she started setting up the food. ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± Velvet looked at the strange food that was in front of her. ¡°Roasted snake, fried moose brain, seahorse ceviche, steamed mandrake and some seaweeds whose name I don¡¯t remember.¡± Velvet¡¯s smile twitched, not knowing what to say. Was this normal food for mages? To her relief, T didn¡¯t seem very happy with the food. ¡°The hell? Can¡¯t you bring normal food? Where did you even buy this?¡± ¡°A temporary shop. Quit whining, try it first.¡± To be honest, Velvet was feeling very attracted to the idea of eating roasted snake, licking her lips. Chapter 49. Answer After having dinner, Velvet said goodbye and went back to the hotel to take a shower and sleep. She was tired, and the food, while strange, was actually really good. T¡¯s opinion may differ. Well, actually, she had ¡®dinner¡¯ again, but just took it to feed the All-purpose worms. She had already paid for the food, after all! Too bad the hotel didn¡¯t have roasted snakes. C said it was from a temporary shop, right? I should visit it before it goes away¡­ ¡°Hyde, are you eating well too?¡± She hadn¡¯t been woken up in the middle of the night by the munching sounds, so she was worried that he wasn¡¯t eating anything. ¡°I can stay a week without eating, I don¡¯t feel like coming out with him so close.¡± ¡°Him?¡± ¡°The owl. It¡¯s a devil.¡± ¡°You mean Ud-¡± ¡°Don¡¯t say his name. Not even on your mind.¡± ¡°Okay. But a devil? Not a demon?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I said. It¡¯s a bit stressful.¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me that before?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t notice until you grabbed him.¡± Hyde sounded a bit annoyed with that, even when he knew it wasn¡¯t Velvet¡¯s fault this time. ¡°Ngh, I didn¡¯t want to¡­ But wasn¡¯t C just manhandling him like nothing? Also, how¡¯s that no one has tried to eat him?¡± ¡°Devils are on a whole nother level than demons. I would like to see a mage try. As for the manhandling thing¡­ maybe they are friends.¡± ¡°Oh, I didn¡¯t know mages and demons could be considered friends. Baraviodos didn¡¯t seem too sad about Iren¡¯s murder.¡± Velvet seemed to think a bit. ¡°Are we friends, Hyde?¡± A few seconds of silence followed the question. ¡°H-y-d-e.¡± ¡°More or less?¡± ¡°Would you be sad if I died Hyde? At least sad enough to cry?¡± ¡°I cannot cry, I am a spider.¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯ll be the bigger pers- living being and say I¡¯ll be sad if a mage ate you. Sad enough to take revenge in your name.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± ¡°Cmon, say something more!¡± ¡°Are you feeling lonely, Velvet?¡± That made her stop for a bit. ¡°Maybe, I¡¯m still not used to the mage¡¯s way of life. I miss Casrey.¡± ¡°You can always go back.¡± ¡°But I don¡¯t want to. Not now, at least. I want to know why I have that dream every night, and what happened ten years ago.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure you will.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± Velvet spent a few minutes looking at the ceiling, unable to fall asleep. ¡°Oh, Hyde?¡± She didn¡¯t know his sleeping habits, but she was pretty sure he was awake. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Do you want some All-purpose worms to eat?¡± ¡°I¡­ Yes, give me some.¡± Velvet turned around and left the bed, going to her hat and putting some worms close to the ribbon. A thin spider leg, blue and black, decorated with golden star-like specks poked out, taking the worms in silence, making them disappear between the shadows. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Thank you.¡± Hyde said. ¡°You are very welcome!¡± ¡°Go to sleep now, you have a gathering with mage hunters tomorrow.¡± ¡°... I had assumed I didn¡¯t have to go.¡± ¡°Just don¡¯t get tracked like an idiot. Know your enemies.¡± She sighed, going back to bed, making sure to pronounce the next syllables very clearly. ¡°Goodnight!¡± ¡°Goodnight.¡± ¡­ Something was wrong in the dream. She realized that upon falling asleep and finding herself there. Velvet looked around, to everywhere that wasn¡¯t pitch dark. Everything looked and felt the same, but the feeling of something being different didn¡¯t disappear. As a knowledge mage, even a misplaced hair would trigger some reaction. Even then, she found nothing. The chained man looked the same as always. After checking everything she could, it clicked. The way her skin crawled, that sense of something wrong. Something was looking at her. The realization made Velvet freeze. Being used to always being alone there, it felt as an invasion of privacy, as if whoever was there with the chained man and her, wasn¡¯t supposed to be there. ¡°You don¡¯t belong here.¡± She said. It was wrong. Her heart started beating so fast, her ears thumped. Something moved in the dark. She didn¡¯t see it, she felt it. I need to wake up. The fastest way was screaming Andras name. Even if she got corrupted, it was better than- ¡°Andr-¡± A finger pressed against her lips. It was cold, but made her body refuse to move. ¡°Shhh¡­¡± The thing in the darkness said. Without removing the finger, it started slithering its body towards Velvet. A deep breath of air, not taken by her, caressed her cheek with a frozen coldness. As if that thing was inhaling air to speak. Do not talk to me! She wanted to scream. But her body refused to do so. ¡°Y¡­¡± A sharp pain erupted in her chest. She screamed, kicking that thing. And then she hit air, a different type of air. Something fluttered away, posing itself on a black staff. Velvet gasped, her throat unable to take in air. ¡°A panic attack.¡± Someone said. Sniffing, she dragged her hand on her cheeks, feeling them wet. Someone was speaking, but the only thing she could hear was her heart beating like crazy, as if it was trying to escape her chest. Curling in a fetal position on the bed, she tried to take deep breaths. Inhale. Exhale. She went on visualizing things she remembered. The feeling of her leather gloves when she put them on, the smell of Madam Dorna¡¯s perfume, the act of filling a pipe for Viroa. Slowly, she calmed down, becoming able to breath with relative ease. Tears still ran through her face, but even that was stopping. ¡°Can you hear Udulluay?¡± The owl had waited until she calmed down, staring at her. ¡°... Yes.¡± It was then that she noticed the bleeding. Four deep claw marks had broken her shirt and pierced her skin. That was what woke her up. She caressed the wounds with gratitude, before noticing Udulluay looking deeply at her. ¡°You weren¡¯t waking up.¡± Velvet heard Hyde¡¯s voice. ¡°Not by words, at least.¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t able to.¡± She tumbled while going to bandage her wounds, her head spinning. ¡°A nightmare.¡± Udulluay said. ¡°You didn¡¯t go to the shop Udulluay told you about.¡± ¡°It¡¯s open now?¡± It was the middle of the night, but Velvet didn¡¯t feel like falling asleep again. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Hm. Hyde, can you stitch these wounds? Or do you not feel like coming out with Udulluay here?¡± ¡°Pick the hat and keep it close to your chest.¡± ¡°You better not get blood on my hat.¡± She did as told, going back to lay on her bed. ¡°If you can have priorities, you¡¯re half healed by now.¡± She closed her eyes, feeling the needle-like stabs. ¡°What was the dream about?¡± Udulluay asked. Velvet didn¡¯t want to answer that question, but the owl had probably saved her life, so he deserved some part of the truth at least. ¡°It was dark, and something was staring at me. Something that didn¡¯t belong in my dream. Its presence felt like a real threat to my life at that moment.¡± Udulluay kept silent at that. ¡°Did you call for someone you shouldn¡¯t? Udulluay is feeling some remaining traces of a presence.¡± ¡°In my dream? I did mention Andras¡­¡± And that was day ¡°Not him. Udulluay recognizes Andras presence.¡± Velvet then realized what could have happened. She had assumed there was no way for anyone else other than her to see that place. And since the only reaction from the dream had come from using Andras name, she hadn¡¯t thought about the other. Because there was someone that could appear anywhere when called. ¡°I also called for Lothrigern.¡± Chapter 50. Again Velvet refused to meet Udulluay¡¯s gaze after saying that, fidgeting with her fingers instead. ¡°It could be something else, right? Like, why would He show up in a dream¡­¡± ¡°You tell Udulluay. Udulluay has no authority over actions made on lucid dreams.¡± Why do I feel like he is mocking me? ¡°Ah, I messed up¡­ But I¡¯m starting to get used to messing up.¡± She sighed deeply. ¡°Such is the price of walking the path of self-discovery.¡± What was worrying her now, was if that thing would remain in her dream for too long. She couldn¡¯t live without sleeping! What if I go somewhere, call His name, and run away? ¡°How much time can someone like Lothrigern stay in one place?¡± She didn¡¯t bother asking why she could say His name under the concealment spell. Clearly Their powers were bigger than Udulluay¡¯s. ¡°Also, I didn¡¯t use the bells when calling for Him, so why would He even appear?¡± ¡°The rules for the dream realm differ from the material realm. If you go where Udulluay told you to, your questions will be answered.¡± He is really bothered that I didn¡¯t listen to him¡­ ¡°I promise you that¡¯s the first thing I¡¯ll do tomorrow.¡± The owl didn¡¯t say anything else. ¡°... I''m going to take a walk.¡± She went to the bathroom to clean herself, before dressing up and leaving the hotel. Unlike the day, the streets were now mostly empty, save for a few cloaked shadows, and almost completely dark, the only light coming from dim lighted gas lamps. Velvet took a deep breath of frost air, exhaling a white smoke that curled in front of her until dissipating. Her steps resonated softly on the stone pavement as she walked with no destination in mind. The stores she passed had their doors closed, and lights turned off. Step by step, the closed signs changed, until there was none left. She had exited the market. The thing that was now in front of her was the Mergifari¡¯s entrance. A metallic stairway that surrounded the cliff towards the lighthouse. Some security chains linked the sides. The whole stairway was rusty brown, but it didn¡¯t even seem close to breaking down. It was cold to the touch, and wet, since the mist had condensed. Velvet didn¡¯t go up the stairs, it wasn¡¯t time yet, but she touched the start of the railing. Ding. A soft tingle sounded behind her, as if a coin had fallen down. She turned around, but no one was behind her. Looking down, she noticed something shiny on the floor. It was a small golden bell. This wasn¡¯t here before. She didn¡¯t pick it up, walking around it while keeping her eyes upon it. Ding. Something small and metallic fell down behind her. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. Velvet flinched, now on full alert. She walked to the side, to keep both bells in her sights. ¡°Udulluay.¡± She called the owl, but no one came. Ding. Another noise, another bell fell behind her. She started running back to the market, not looking back. All the shops were open, rows of bells dingling from the doors, the windows and the walls. And yet, it was still empty. ¡°Hyde?¡± He was supposed to be in her hat, she was wearing it right now. ¡°Yes?¡± Hyde¡¯s voice was like a breath of fresh air. ¡°Don¡¯t yes me, can¡¯t you see what¡¯s happening?¡± She hadn¡¯t stopped running, going towards the hotel. Ding. A cluster of bells got close to tripping her, scattering between dingling noises when she kicked them. ¡°Are you scared?¡± ¡°Yes! Do you know how to stop this?¡± Velvet was almost at the hotel door, where someone was waiting for her. Stopping on her tracks, she looked at the figure dressed in green. ¡°Of course, but I need you to say your name.¡± The figure was smoking from a long, thin pipe, letting out a golden mist from his mouth with each smoke, to the point that it was surrounding him, making Velvet unable to discern his features. His long robe touched the ground, but that didn¡¯t seem to bother him. Together with the clothes, long green hair slid on the floor. So beautiful¡­ Velvet got her breath taken away, as if she had been awestruck. Why is someone so beautiful letting himself be touched by the filth? And like the filth, she also wanted to touch- ¡°Your name.¡± Hyde repeated. ¡°You want to get out, don¡¯t you?¡± ¡°I¡­¡± Wait, get out? ¡°Get out?¡± She repeated, still feeling in awe. Ding. This time the noise came from her hat. A thin spider leg, black and blue, with golden star-like specks leaned over her eyes. ¡°Yes, you want this to end, don¡¯t you? You want to get out.¡± Ding. The body of a spider followed, dangling in front of her. Its eight eyes had been replaced with small golden bells. The bells didn¡¯t fit on the small spider¡¯s eyes, nor on his head, so they were mercilessly nailed with force, to the point the spider¡¯s body was starting to break, a blue liquid falling down on the floor, making a noise different from the bells. ¡°What is your name?¡± The spider asked. ¡°Your name.¡± She screamed, kicking the spider away, but hitting the void instead. Velvet woke up gasping, on the bed. Her body was wet with sweat, a dry, burning sensation on her throat. ¡°Are you okay?¡± Hyde asked, seemingly being woken up by Velvet¡¯s struggles. ¡°No! No I am not!¡± She kicked the bedsheets away, curling and hugging her legs. ¡°Hyde, what¡¯s my name?¡± ¡°Why are you even asking that now? You can¡¯t have forgotten it¡­¡± ¡°Just answer me.¡± The spider seemed to think, but Velvet soon heard his voice. ¡°I cannot tell you.¡± Velvet raised her head to look at her hat, to where Hyde was. Instead, a dingling noise received her. A white gloved hand appeared in front of her, grabbing and raising her chin, the golden bells in his wrist making those soft noises. ¡°You¡¯re the one that has to say it.¡± He didn¡¯t wait for an answer this time, and blew a puff of golden smoke into her face. ¡°You did say mine, after all.¡± She didn¡¯t manage to see the facial features between the mist, coughing and pushing him away. But she didn''t manage to touch him, and hit the void. Velvet woke up in her bed, in the hotel. Gasping for air, the taste of smoke still on her mouth. ¡°Are you okay?¡± Hyde¡¯s voice in her mind startled her, and she reacted by crawling backwards away from the hat, getting ready to use magic, even when that might piss off Udulluay. ¡°Velvet?¡± He repeated, and that word made her relax immensely. ¡°Say my name again.¡± ¡°Velvet. What happened?¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s my name.¡± She lowered her hostile pose. ¡°And I wasn¡¯t the one that said it.¡± Slumping against the bed, she covered her head with the pillow. Hyde stood in silence for a few seconds, seemingly making connections. ¡°What did you do this time?¡± ¡°I messed something up. Again.¡± Chapter 51. Dreamer ¡°But how? You didn¡¯t learn anything useful yesterday?¡± ¡°Ngh, it was from saying the name that wasn¡¯t Andras.¡± She didn¡¯t need to explain more, since Hyde would understand. Now that she was more calmed down, she could think clearly. ¡°That confirms something. The place where the chained man is can be traveled to. It is a physical location.¡± Lucid dreaming, that was the word the fake Udulluay had used to explain Velvet¡¯s actions in the dream. Since that dream was probably a fabrication of Lothrigern, whether that was true or fake was dubious, but investigating lucid dreaming was a step in the right direction. Lothrigern¡­ Velvet remembered the person in her dream, and the sensation she felt looking at Him, her chest fluttering. Is this how female mantis catch and eat male mantis? She compared the feeling to a book that Celia liked to read, where it was explained how mantis devoured their partner after mating. The genders were reversed in her case, but the word ¡®Mantis¡¯ described Lothrigern to perfection. Velvet shuddered, realizing how close she got to being devoured. Morpheus, that was the shop that Udulluay recommended her for dream related stuff. Today was also the gathering of the Devil¡¯s Taste members, but Velvet prioritized her dream safety, picking Morpheus without doubt. If she had time, she would do both. ¡­ Morpheus¡¯ shop looked like how a circus fortune-teller''s tent would look. Lit purple candles decorated the floor, a thin smoke trail coming off them. Colorful fabrics with star and smoke patterns formed the walls that separated the shop from the rest of the market. The candles were scented, a sweet smell that made Velvet drowsy coming from them. Candles and fabric together¡­ Looks like a fire hazard. She tried to contain the need of moving the candles away from the fabrics, not wanting to annoy the owner before meeting them. Lifting the piece of cloth replacing a door, she entered, a charlatan''s voice welcoming her. "My, I can feel you are having problems, lost one." Laying on top of colorful and ornamented to the extremes cushions, a cloaked figurine was inside. Refraining from commenting, she decided to play along. "H-How do you know? Is that so obvious?" Her experiences with C had taught her how mages could guess when someone was pretending to be knowledgeable. So she pretended to be the opposite, at least to win some experience. The charlatan smoked, exhaling a gray mist from their nose, with a sweet, drowsy smell similar to the candles. "Indeed. Your way of moving, breathing, and the order in which you looked at the fabrics tells me all I need to know." "The order...?" She knew which ones she looked at, but pretended not to. First, one with a dark blue starry sky, second, one green with golden thorny branches, and third, a soft pink one with birds. ¡°Like¡­ the first three? Or all of them?¡± The charlatan chuckled, not explaining anything. It means nothing, doesn¡¯t it? You¡¯re lucky Udulluay recommended you¡­ This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. ¡°Which one attracts you the most?¡± The cheapest¡­ She tried to comply, after all, she actually had a problem, not being here for laughs. ¡°Hm¡­ That one.¡± She picked a cloth depicting an inverted crown, that was on top of a broken fountain, a cloudy water spilling on the latter half of the tapestry. The charlatan chucked, turning his laying position to a sitting one. ¡°A big problem indeed, you should tell me the full history.¡± ¡°Big problem? Can you be more specific?¡± At least before starting to ask me for money! ¡°That tapestry symbolizes two titles of the same entity.¡± Taking some sweet time to smoke and blow it all again inside the tiny tent, while Velvet coughed, the mage hummed. ¡°The Mist of Eternal Beauty, the Sovereign of the Ungovernable. Those are titles used for Lothrigern.¡± They smacked the pipe a few times. ¡°So, what did you do?¡± Velvet laughed. ¡°I called for Him in a dream a few nights ago. A lucid dream.¡± ¡°Hm¡­ And what was the reason for such action?¡± ¡°I wanted to see if something happened¡­ I-I mean, it was a dream! It¡¯s like thinking of someone¡¯s name in your mind, right? I didn¡¯t even use bells¡­¡± That answer was partly true. Exhaling a breath of smoke, they continued. ¡°In dreams, a name doesn¡¯t matter, but lucid dreams aren¡¯t exactly dreams.¡± ¡°Meaning?¡± The figure kept silent, sliding a paper towards her. Written in an exaggerated cursive, a few options were offered, with different plans and prices. Velvet picked the middle option, worth 50 auris. She paid first, sliding the money towards them. ¡°Do you know the term ¡®collective consciousness¡¯?¡± ¡°I do not.¡± ¡°It¡¯s related to the unconscious mind, and the concept of all minds being connected. It¡¯s been used to explain how different societies could end up making similar things, even without having communicated or met previously.¡± ¡°Lucid dreaming serves as a bridge, from the unconscious mind, to the collective consciousness.¡± ¡°Is the collective consciousness a place that can be traveled to?¡± Velvet listened with attention. ¡°That¡¯s impossible. For normal humans, or anything that isn¡¯t made to travel.¡± ¡°So it¡¯s not impossible for Lothrigern.¡± ¡°Nothing is really impossible for one of Them. As I was saying, the ability to travel the collective consciousness while sleeping is both a blessing and a curse.¡± Velvet didn¡¯t exactly travel it, being restricted to where the chained man was, but she refrained from correcting the figure. ¡°One can access amazing ideas, learning skills that would not be possible to learn awake, but one can also meet disturbed individuals, getting their minds tampered with.¡± ¡°That¡¯s one of the reasons mages from the sloth or dreamer paradigm can succumb to various mental illnesses in their career.¡± Velvet pretended to be interested, even when that information was useless to her. ¡°So, about Lothrigern? How can I get rid of Him?¡± ¡°You have two options. Option one, He just reacted to you saying His name, but once you are out of His immediate, let me reiterate, immediate reach, like now, His interest is gone, and, unless you say His name again, your problems are gone with him.¡± ¡°Option two, He is feeling mischievous, you called Him while in a bad mood, or He wants something from you. If that¡¯s the case, I recommend you to leave the market, enough to get out of the concealment spell, write a letter to your loved ones, and fulfill any wish you have.¡± ¡°Because if He wants you dead, you are already dead.¡± The figure finished, and went back to smoke, waiting for Velvet¡¯s reaction. ¡°Oh.¡± She pondered. ¡°But He didn¡¯t kill me yesterday, right?¡± ¡°He also waited a few days after you called Him to appear, right?¡± They answered in the same tone. ¡°Wait a week, if you are alive after that, you can feel safe. You won¡¯t have to worry if it¡¯s the other answer.¡± ¡°Even then, you¡¯ve paid for more than what I¡¯ve told you, so I¡¯ll give you some protection charms for lucid dreaming. They won¡¯t really work against Him, but, in case Lothrigern isn¡¯t feeling vindictive, they will protect you from lesser threats while you sleep.¡± ¡­ My other threat comes from using Andras name, surely they also won¡¯t work there. Even then, she took the charms, saying goodbye to Morpheus¡¯ owner. She still had time to attend the Devil¡¯s Taste gathering. After all, if she only had a week to live, why not? Chapter 52. Bid to your heads content Maneely¡¯s shop. From outside it looked like a normal clothes shop, with a big glass window showcasing well dressed mannequins, with exuberant dresses, shoes and hats. Velvet looked at a green gala dress, with a long, fluttery skirt, white gloves and a hat with feathers. ¡°Oh, this one looks so pretty!¡± She got closer, looking at the price. 550 auris. ¡°... Now that I look at it better, it¡¯s not that pretty.¡± She took a step back from the glass, and entered the shop. Before asking the owner for the gathering, she took a trip inside, watching the clothes being sold. I need new gloves, I only own a pair, and they are starting to look damaged¡­ Huh, I hope there is a new member¡¯s discount, I really like those¡­ ¡°Hello, how may I help you?¡± A voice sounded next to Velvet. ¡°Oh, I was just looking¡­ Wait, actually no, someone gave me this.¡± She gave the owner the piece of paper with Vibora¡¯s message. ¡°I was invited to a gathering, I think¡­¡± The figure looked at the paper for a while, checking its authenticity. ¡°Please, follow me.¡± Not waiting for Velvet, they entered a door at the shop¡¯s back. Velvet followed suit, not really concerned since Udulluay was watching as always. After walking for a narrow passage, they arrived at another room, this one with its walls free from products, beige and sad, with a bunch of tables making an open circle, mages sitting down behind them. The figure that brought her here walked to a mage, leaning to their ears and whispering something, before signaling Velvet to come there and sit next to them. Velvet did so, claiming the empty seat to herself, before turning to the mage. ¡°So, are you the one I caused to start an intimate relationship with the wall, or the gathering¡¯s boss?¡± ¡°Can¡¯t I be both?¡± ¡°If the boss of an organization is fighting on the Arena¡¯s lower levels, and gets beaten by a novice, you better pack your things, because you¡¯re not made for this.¡± Vibora laughed, Velvet was sure it was her now, clicking her tongue. ¡°No need to be so hostile, I barely did anything to you, and if you¡¯re here, you didn¡¯t really care about what I did to that guy.¡± ¡°True, but I¡¯m not the kind that considers the enemies of my enemies my friends, well, actually I am, but I also am not. You understand, right?¡± ¡°Of course. Friends with benefits, with the benefits part meaning actual benefits.¡± ¡°Exactly! So, in what way does your gathering bring benefits to its members?¡± Velvet looked around, staring at the conversing mages. ¡°Hm, think of it as a way to sell or obtain things that would be difficult to obtain in normal shops. Or accept rewarding commissions.¡± ¡°Like?¡± ¡°Wait and see, you¡¯re free to bid or try a commission.¡± This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Velvet didn¡¯t answer or continue the conversation, choosing to wait instead. After half an hour, the voices died out, and something covered with a cloth got dragged to the center of the circle by two figures. A third figure walked in front of them, clearing their throat. ¡°Welcome to the monthly gathering. I can smell some new faces, so I hope whoever invited them explained how things go here. Now, starting the bids.¡± The other two figures removed the cloth, showcasing an enormous cylindrical glass container with transparent liquid and something else inside. It looked like a very hairy monkey with four arms and six opened red eyes. The head was separated from the body, as if the monkey had met its end by beheading. ¡°First, a full specimen of a six eyed swamp chimpanzee. An ambush predator with a petrifying gaze, belonging to the Creep Paradigm. Along with a delicious brain, its eyes can be used for a long list of potions, not to speak of its claws, hands and bones.¡± ¡°There¡¯s been some damage to the spinal cord due to the beheading. Initial price, 500 auris.¡± ¡°550¡± ¡°700¡± That went on for a while, the final price being 1025 auris. Velvet didn¡¯t bother to try, not really needing anything from the monkey. The two attendants took the monkey to the side, showcasing the next product. This time it was another cylindrical glass container, but way smaller. ¡°A pair of mage¡¯s eyes and brain, from the Knowledge Paradigm, one Esca. Starting price, 5000 auris.¡± ¡°Hm, he is bringing out the big guns already?¡± Vibora said beside her. ¡°That means there¡¯s something better waiting.¡± Velvet contained an ugly laugh. ¡°Like what? A demon?¡± She was already expecting mage parts to be sold, T¡¯s warning was for something, after all. Still, the mage in question sharing paradigms with her was a feeling she didn¡¯t like. ¡°Perhaps.¡± ¡°6000.¡± ¡°8000.¡± The mage eyes ended up selling at 15000 auris. ¡°Is everything that costly? Fighting novices in the Arena can¡¯t be your main job, right?¡± Vibora laughed. ¡°He first showcases a few high quality goods to get the mood going, just wait to be half done to buy something.¡± ¡°Okay, okay. So, since you also can¡¯t afford anything for now, let¡¯s talk. You called me something that day. An Ophidia. Explain.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you being too overconfident? Speaking to me in that tone.¡± She didn¡¯t sound annoyed, maybe because there was a concealment spell in effect. ¡°Losers can¡¯t be beggars. Do better next time.¡± She knew she was provoking her, but didn¡¯t really care. ¡°Didn¡¯t you ask that guy?¡± ¡°Yes, he said it referred to the first demon you ate. Since you called me a fellow Ophidia, I guess snakes were our first snack.¡± ¡°Indeed.¡± ¡°What made you know? I didn¡¯t feel anything like that towards you.¡± ¡°My Paradigm is the one that allowed me to know, so of course you felt nothing.¡± ¡°Oh, that sucks, but I¡¯ll survive. So, what do I get by being an Ophidia?¡± She had noticed her pupils getting sharper, same thing with her fangs. ¡°In a few months, you will grow some scales. Usually in the stomach, neck or thighs.¡± Velvet grimaced upon hearing that. ¡°Some actually useful effects?¡± Vibora chuckled. ¡°You don¡¯t seem happy.¡± ¡°I like my actual body and appearance very much.¡± ¡°Well, maybe the next part changes your opinion. Depending on the Paradigm of the devoured demon, you can gain some passive effects. Like, if you eat a wrath demon, your physical strength will grow, a knowledge demon would make your memory much better, a gambler demon might lead you to encounter interesting scenarios, a lust demon would allow you to know how someone feels towards your actions, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.¡± She said interesting scenarios, not lucky encounters¡­ Remembering Alrai¡¯s luck with pissing off the wrong people, she almost laughed. Vibora left her to bid over a dried two headed snake. She won, with 320 auris spent. Velvet bid over a bottle of soul-sucking leeches, interested in making figurines with them, but gave up around the 200 auris. The auction part of the gathering was coming to a close, the better thing waiting that Vibora mentioned coming to the stage. A reinforced cage, with chains keeping something contained inside that was shaking the whole floor with each struggle. ¡°From the depths of the Unnamed forest of the Mergifari, where only expert mages can set foot and it¡¯s rumored that a gate to the deepest part of hell remains hidden inside.¡± ¡°We¡¯ve been gifted with the chance of selling a whole wandering demon.¡± The lights in the room shined over the thing in the cage. Around five meters long, grayish green in color, a reptilian thing was suspended in the middle of the cage by thick chains. It had so many chains keeping it sealed that Velvet could barely see it. If she had to guess, a strange crocodile would be her choice. ¡°Of the Envy Paradigm, this demon can-¡± ¡°A million and half.¡± Someone interrupted. ¡°Two million.¡± The gathering¡¯s holder chuckled, walking around the cage to fire up the bidders more. Clack. The demon twisted in a strange way, and a chain gave up, breaking. No one had time to react, the wandering demon¡¯s mouth free. Opening its mouth wide, it managed to catch the figure in front, biting down. Like beating a watermelon, a crunching sound was made, the head getting brutally crushed, brain matter, blood and bone shards falling on the ground. A headless body fell to the floor, the concealment spell removed after death. Clack. Another chain broke, the demon¡¯s upper half falling to the ground. Chapter 53. Lump Velvet got ready to run, the door already in her sights. ¡°Don¡¯t move.¡± Hyde ordered. ¡°That¡¯s not an animal, that¡¯s a demon that knows he is in someone else''s territory.¡± Velvet stopped, but, unlike her, a group of mages rushed to the entrance, Vibora included. Clank. Another chain broke, the rest of the demon falling down. Some mages used magic, against it, a rain of colorful shapes hitting in its direction. The demon made a strange noise, unlike the ones normal crocodiles made, dashing towards the exit. The exit wasn¡¯t wide enough to accommodate both him and the running mages, who were unable to stop its charge. Screams of mages getting crushed against the walls rang out, together with the wet splashing sounds of the meat being scrapped against the stone. ¡°Where is Udulluay?¡± Velvet asked. ¡°He knows everything that¡¯s happening, right?¡± ¡°Yes, but I told you already, he is a devil, not a guardian.¡± Of course, why would he rush to save the people that eat his kind? She thought, but didn¡¯t voice her opinions, not wanting to add members to Udulluay¡¯s ignore when in trouble list. Luckily for them, Udulluay didn¡¯t stall for more than a few seconds, appearing from the walls and flying towards the escaping demon. A loud bang was heard, the walls vibrating and a few pieces of the ceiling falling on the top of Velvet¡¯s head. A rapid succession of bangs followed, each one closer to where she was. She got even more away from the exit, almost touching the wall to the side, just before Udulluay dragged the demon back inside the room by its tail. Once he got it inside enough, he tossed the demon against the opposite wall, another rumble sounding, and more pieces of the ceiling falling on their heads. The demon sneered and growled, saying something in a language Velvet didn¡¯t understand. What she felt, instead, was blood dripping from her ears. A curse? Covering her ears she got down, kneeling behind a table. Udulluay slammed the demon¡¯s long maw against the floor, grabbing it with his claws and forcefully shutting it up. The sound of broken bones followed, the demon¡¯s mouth snapping effortlessly under Udulluay¡¯s grip. He opened his wings, and some feathers fell on the demon¡¯s skin, melting into its body. It struggled with force, turning its body around, the sound of bones breaking due to Udulluay¡¯s grip not wavering. A tearing noise sounded, half the demon¡¯s long mouth being ripped off by its own movements. Udulluay suddenly flew away, before a wave of snakes grabbed him from behind. Velvet recognized those snakes. They were Vibora¡¯s. Steps came from the exit, slow and uneven, as if whatever was coming out wasn¡¯t whole, or as if it was too whole. A broken, bloody hand reached out and grabbed the wall, pulling itself out. The mages that were inside the path to the exit where the demon entered had been mangled beyond recognition, their meat, bones and organs mixing in an amorphous, glistening lump. And they were coming back. Necromancy. The magic that controlled the dead. A cacophony of gurgling noises came from its numerous mouths, their vocal chords being used like strings. Broken and damaged heads dangled from the monster¡¯s sides, and one in particular caught Velvet¡¯s attention. One with long black hair tainted by blood from where the snakes were growing. If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. Velvet pulled a sheet of paper after seeing it. Surely Udulluay wouldn¡¯t punish her for using magic in these circumstances, right? Then she plucked at the bracelet made of balls she was carrying, dropping the drops of Bomber Frog¡¯s blood that were contained on top of them. Combining them and applying magic, ten paper figurines bloomed, with frog-like legs. She was going to send them to the monster, but her sight got dark, with a recognizable figure appearing further away. ¡°The chained man¡­¡± She flinched, realizing what happened. She was dreaming! Since Vibora was using her magic, the other corpses should also be able to. ¡°The dream charms¡­¡± Before trying to shout Andras name, she wanted to use one of the charms, the one that was used to stop a dream and wake up. But not only did she not find the charms, her magic didn¡¯t do anything in that place. Resigned to use Andras name, her sights blurred again, and she found herself in the gathering¡¯s room. ¡°How?¡± ¡°I used the dream charms for you.¡± Hyde said. He had come out from the hat, and skittered back inside once Velvet opened her eyes. ¡°Say my name first.¡± She wasn¡¯t being fooled again. ¡°Velvet.¡± ¡°Okay, did anyone else wake up?¡± ¡°No, but those three weren¡¯t affected. They are powerful.¡± He referred to the two figures that brought the cage with the demon at first, and another one. They were pushing the monster away, trying to salvage the auction goods. Velvet scoffed at their actions, but at least they were distracting the monster, while Udulluay dealt with the demon. So Velvet went on making two chaining charms. She could use the dream charms to awake someone else, but nothing could guarantee that the mage she used them on was useful or strong. She preferred to save them for herself, giving them to Hyde. Velvet sent her paper figurines to the monster¡¯s back; even when its body had eyes all around, more than half of them had been damaged before death and reanimation, making them blind. The figurines jumped over the tables like frogs¡­ or very big fleas. Velvet took a glimpse at Udulluay, wanting to know how he was going, and the results were good. But she didn¡¯t know if killing the demon would stop the necromancy spell immediately, so having to take it out was probably a must. Boom! She activated the figurine that was closer to the monster, blowing it up. Dust and debris got caught in the explosion, making her unable to see the effects. One of the surviving mages used a wind spell, pushing the dust away. Once the air was clear again, Velvet cursed. A wall made of roots had covered the monster. Now it was burning, but the explosion had barely damaged the monster, only one of its mangled heads burned. ¡°The dead don¡¯t generate magic. As long as we manage to make it use all the magic it has stored, it will become a pile of moving meat and bones.¡± One of the standing mages said to Velvet. ¡°How many mages are inside it?¡± She asked, waiting for the root wall to fully crumble. ¡°Fifteen.¡± Fifteen¡­ Vibora is one, another can make people fall asleep, and one is from the Lust Paradigm. A sudden crunch came from behind her, and Velvet jumped away, rolling in the ground, before one of the chains that were holding the demon previously slammed where she was. A headless figure got up slowly. Velvet recognized the deceased auction holder, who also had been reanimated. The chain started receding, going back to the headless man. Clack. Suddenly it stopped, tensing up. Velvet had grabbed the end, refusing to let it go, even when she was slowly being dragged with it. A few paper figurines jumped from her clothes to the top of the chain, hopping in rapid succession over it, towards the headless man. Devoid of head, and thus, eyes and brain, he simply used more magic to call the chain back. Boom! The first figurine to jump onto him exploded, making Velvet tumble backwards when the force calling the chain stopped. The headless body fell down, still burning, like a marionette whose strings got cut. She raised a finger to the other three mages, and then pointed at herself. She then made a zero, and pointed at them. One of them laughed. ¡°The big guy costs fifteen.¡± ¡°Oh, then it¡¯s two to zero, my bad.¡± Chapter 54. Hole She had charred the side that contained the lust mage, after all. But she didn¡¯t really care about winning that bet, her objective being raising some competition so the other three mages felt pressured to fight the meat monster harder. Five of the monster arms extended, a cape of furry hair growing on them. Velvet recognized the similarities with Nereus¡¯ magic. She was far away from it, and, since the Predator Paradigm was made for close combat, the monster¡¯s target were the three other mages. Velvet used that time to pull on the chain, rolling it loosely on her hand. It was broken, but even then, it had restrained a demon for a long while. If she got hold of the other parts, and combined them with her chaining charm¡­ The other parts were close to where Udulluay and the demon were fighting. The skin parts of the demon where Udulluay¡¯s feathers had melted were growing lumps. One of those lumps erupted, breaking the skin, a rain of bloody feathers falling out, and a small owl head poking out, its body following and flying away. A second lump started showing signs of eruption. Velvet looked at the newborn Udulluay, a crawling sensation running through her back. She almost made an oath to never touch an Udulluay again. Still, since the demon was much bigger than Udulluay, a few births didn¡¯t diminish its size that much. But it looked busy trying to fight back¡­ Velvet looked at the other parts of the chain, then at the meat monster, who was fighting the three mages with its newborn claws. No one could afford to pay attention to her. She applied some magic to the chain that she was holding. As an artifact, one didn¡¯t need to be of the same Paradigm to use it, being a mage was enough. The chain curled and moved to her will, so she made one end curl itself on a pillar, and the other end curled on her waist. That way, if something unexpected happened, she could drag herself back with ease. She started slowly moving towards the broken cage, paying attention to both fights with every step. She had seen the demon crushing mages just using its body, so she had no intention of trying her luck. The cage was immense, even after getting mangled, and the longest piece of chain was dangling from its edges. It had broken in more than two pieces, so Velvet grabbed the one closest to her and applied magic to it, slowly untangling it. She paid special attention to the parts stuck to the cage¡¯s broken bars, not wanting to make any noise. Velvet was recollecting the third piece, when she noticed that the demon glimpsed at her. Almost imperceptibly, and it went back to fighting Udulluay at the same moment, but she already knew how that demon worked. It had waited until the auction mage was just in front of it to kill him and escape, after all. So Velvet grabbed a handful of chains and wrapped them around the cage, putting it between her and the demon, who launched itself towards her right at that moment. Its body broke through the cage with ease, making another hole on it, and was met with one of the chaining charms, suddenly stopping on its tracks. Crack. One of the translucent chains broke, together with the spell, the demon becoming free again and keeping its charge, being followed closely by Udulluay. So such an opponent is only held back by two seconds¡­ Velvet had used the first chain to lift herself to the ceiling, letting the demon take the ones she had wrapped on the cage. Of course, our difference in power is abysmal, so once I become stronger, the chains will follow me. Wrapping another chain to a second pillar, her eyes met the demon¡¯s again. It opened the broken thing that was a mouth a few seconds ago, speaking again in that strange language. The sounds came twisted and difficult to understand, the curse barely taking effect this time. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. ¡°Hyde, do you know what it keeps saying?¡± ¡°You¡¯re better not knowing the exact meaning, only that it raises the dead.¡± Udulluay used that moment to claw one of the demon¡¯s eyes out, and another Udulluay clawed the other. Velvet managed to count ten Udulluays in total, but most of them were pulling out the sleeping mages from the room. Taking advantage of the demon¡¯s blindness, she moved down from the ceiling to the floor, her sights now on the meat monster. The three mages had fared well on their own, half monster done for, so Velvet was fine with just supporting them. ¡°Five to two.¡± One of the mages said when Velvet approached them. ¡°As in you three or individual?¡± ¡°Just me.¡± The mage sounded proud. ¡°Good job! I''m so proud of you!¡± She used the most cheerful and annoying tone she could make, while rolling the chains. Having an idea, she put the remaining chaining charm on the chains, planning to use it on the demon. Noticing her intentions, and having previously been victim of both types of chains, the demon rolled on the ground, getting rid of the feathers growing in it, before using a spell that started inflating its body, a green liquid dripping from its wounds. Once it fell on the ground, a hissing corrosive noise sounded, the floor melting. Like the demon, Velvet also noticed its intentions. I prefer death to captivity. And you all are coming with me. Changing her mind, she ran towards the meat monster, who got ready to attack her, using Vibora¡¯s snakes. Velvet didn¡¯t waste time defending herself, letting them bite her arms, taking deep breaths, all while the demon kept expanding, even when, together with the green corrosive liquid, feathers kept growing. She saw the other mages also running away, not bothering trying to stop it. The demon hit its growing limit, a few cracks appearing. Velvet¡¯s body hit the meat monster at that same moment, and used the chaining charm, feeling the bloody meat getting chained and falling on top of her, and she took a deep last breath. A muffled explosion, way more potent than Velvet¡¯s figurines, sounded, the meat on top of her vibrating. Keep calm, the more scared I get, the faster I¡¯ll run out of oxygen. She told herself, while the monster tried to break free from the chains, causing the blood, bones and pieces of dirty clothes to scrap against her. The sizzling noise of corroding meat got to her, and even when the monster was too dead to feel pain, its reanimated nerves still reacted, shaking its body. Udulluay knows I am alive, right? No, don¡¯t think like that. I need to wait until the monster is fully dead, and then use the chains to tear a hole in its body. My paper figurines¡­ the ones outside are broken, and I cannot explode the ones with me that close. I can make a tiny hole with the chains, make one of them go out and explode the outer part of the monster¡¯s body, clearing it from the poison. The monster stopped its struggle at that moment, the poison finally killing it. I can hold out twenty seconds more, I don¡¯t want the risk of the poison on the ceiling falling on me when I get out. Velvet started moving the chains, searching the points where the bodies were from different mages, making a hole on it. She made it perpendicular, so that poison wouldn¡¯t fall on her. She pushed up, making a bit of room for the figurine to move on the tunnel, causing sloshing sounds to be made. Don¡¯t breathe, I¡¯ll puke if I do. She had already tasted some things when the monster fell on her, so she pressed the burning need to breathe away. Slowly, too slowly, the figurine was crawling out, until Velvet felt it start to melt. Boom! The meat pile shook again, losing half its current size. Another one. Feeling dizzy already, Velvet called back the chains, putting another figurine in the tunnel. You only need to do half the path, hurry, hurry. The seconds became eternal, Velvet almost exploded the figure before time, but it finally arrived at the designated position, exploding. Unable to keep on holding, Velvet pushed the remaining meat away with the chains, taking a deep, deserved breath, coughing and spitting the things that got in her mouth. The air smelled awful, of burning feathers and meat, the remaining gas of the poison burned at her throat, and her whole person was covered in blood and entrails, but, even then, it was the best air she had ever breathed. Chapter 55. Zero Looking around, Velvet didn¡¯t find any path free of poison, even counting the chain¡¯s reach. She could try blowing out some parts of the wall, but that could cause the whole room to collapse. It still might even collapse on its own¡­ Velvet thought, seeing the sorry state of the walls. Some were corroded already, the paint melting. What to do, what to do¡­ She laughed, startling Hyde. ¡°Are you okay?¡± ¡°Ah, it¡¯s just¡­ I look like a castaway, but instead of a whole island, I get a pile of corpses. I feel like writing ¡®Help¡¯ with bone pieces.¡± Velvet laughed again. ¡°I also feel sticky and gross.¡± The flutter of wings prevented Hyde from answering, a back staff growing from the corpses next to Velvet, and Udulluay landing on it. ¡°You¡¯re the last one.¡± The owl said. Velvet looked at the half melted bodies of the mages that Udulluay didn¡¯t have time to pull out, guessing he meant the last one alive. How did he decide who to pull out first? Is it based on personal preference? She didn¡¯t ask, letting Udulluay use some magic to bring her out of there, her sights going dark for a few seconds, before finding herself back at the clothes shop. She flopped on the cold floor, making the white marble become tainted red. ¡°Damn dude, are you dying?¡± One of the three mages that were fighting before said. ¡°Don¡¯t dude me, I am a lady.¡± Velvet said. ¡°And it¡¯s not mine¡­ not all of it, at least. Most of it isn¡¯t.¡± The mage was going to say something, but Udulluay came back at that moment, setting himself on his staff. Velvet saw that he was staring at one of the three mages. ¡°Bringing a live, uncontained demon, failing to keep it in check, causing twenty-three lives to be lost and the destruction of rented installations. The fine is 8750000 auris. 250000 as compensation for each family, and 3 million for the breach of contract.¡± Choking upon hearing the price, Velvet dissimulated it by coughing, since her throat was a bit burned. ¡°I¡¯ll have the money this week.¡± The mage said, after thinking. ¡°Udulluay gives you until tomorrow.¡± What¡¯s the punishment for not paying? Velvet wanted to ask, but she kept silent. What does Udulluay need money for? This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. ¡°Then tomorrow I¡¯ll have the money.¡± ¡°What about compensation for the living?¡± Velvet raised her hand. ¡°Isn¡¯t being alive compensation enough?¡± The mage said, almost between their teeth. ¡°I¡¯ve been terribly harmed, and almost killed. But, we can wait until the surviving mages wake up, and see if they also think living is compensation enough. Some of them were hit by stray spells, after all.¡± The mage looked at Udulluay, who said nothing. With a sigh, they submitted to Velvet¡¯s tiny veiled threat. ¡°I hope you¡¯re not expecting the same amount of money that the dead get.¡± ¡°No. Oh, is this shop yours?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll take compensation in cash or clothes then.¡± The mage, who Velvet now supposed was Maneely, or from the Maneely family groaned, even when they were the one responsible for causing the problem in the first place. ¡°I can give you a 50% discount for today.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Velvet said disappointed, extending her hand. ¡°Then I¡¯ll take the cash compensation.¡± ¡°75%.¡± Velvet didn¡¯t lower her hand. Maneely was troubled. She could accept giving that girl a bigger discount, but she didn¡¯t know how much money she had, and could end up losing more than by paying a compensation directly. On the other hand, neither Udulluay nor the girl had given her a number, but if she paid less than what the girl expected, maybe she would decide to wait until the other mages awoke, riling them up. Maneely¡¯s plan was to wake the mages one by one, that way, she had the upper hand in negotiating the compensation amounts, which would not work if that girl stayed in her shop. And, by looking at her actions, Maneely was sure she knew that. But, luckily for her, mages tended to be pretty selfish. ¡°90% discount for today, and I won¡¯t lower it anymore.¡± ¡°Accepted, oh, but include some bags on the offer, I can¡¯t exactly carry the clothes like this¡­¡± Velvet motioned to the bloody floor. One of the other mages snorted, getting glared at by Maneely. ¡­ Going back to the hotel once she finished shopping, Velvet took a long warm bath. Longer than necessary because the blood had already dried, so she had to be soaking until it softened. I should go to a doctor to check that I didn¡¯t catch any weird things after being inside that meat monster¡­ Hyde had stitched her wounds, but her throat still had some burns. She had gone to an apothecary shop before going back to the hotel, buying some potion for those. Even then, the potion was for the poison removal and preventing the burns from getting infected and forming pus, not for healing the burns. That would take time. Were there even doctors that could work under the concealment spell? She didn¡¯t have to wait much for an answer, once she was out of the shower, clean, dried and dressed, a black staff sprouted from the ground, and the flutter of wings announced Udulluay¡¯s arrival. ¡°Oh, hello.¡± ¡°Udulluay saw you taking something that didn''t belong to you.¡± Velvet stared at him with a blank expression, thinking. ¡°You mean the chains?¡± ¡°Indeed.¡± She had left them on the table after cleaning the blood from them. Three broken pieces was all she had salvaged, the rest melting with the demon. ¡°But they are broken, I was just helping them take out the trash!¡± Udulluay didn¡¯t answer, staring at her in silence. ¡°The chains would have melted if I didn¡¯t save them, and I¡¯m sure those mages think the chains were lost.¡± The owl kept his silent stare at her, and Velvet laughed nervously. She took a deep breath, using her secret weapon. ¡°Today it¡¯s my birthday.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± Udulluay¡¯s voice was usually very soft and inexpressive, but Velvet almost felt a very small tone of irony in those words. Or maybe she was just delusional. ¡°... Tomorrow, tomorrow is my birthday. But understand meee,¡± She kept trying to convince the devil. ¡°I''ve become separated from my friends, unable to use a faery to call anyone I''ve ever known. Doomed to spend my birthday alone!¡± ¡°My eighteenth birthday, and I get zero presents.¡± ¡°Cmon Udululu, no one is gonna miss these chains!¡± Velvet heard Hyde''s voice in her mind. ¡°Udululu? Do you want to become an Udulluay¡¯s mother?¡± ¡°Are you trying to give me nightmares? Not that I can have nightmares, but don¡¯t say that ever again.¡± She almost shuddered at what Hyde was implying. ¡°No, I need a weapon, and this one works great with my magic. It was made for me, Hyde.¡± Udulluay seemed to be pondering Velvet¡¯s words. In the end, he simply ruffled his feathers. ¡°The chain¡¯s owner hasn¡¯t asked Udulluay about the lost chains, but in the case the chain¡¯s rightful owner does so, Udulluay will come to pick the chains.¡± Almost cheering, Velvet nodded. ¡°Okay, okay, I accept those terms!¡± Chapter 56. Title The next day, Velvet was once again working at the repair¡¯s shop. ¡°I¡¯m back, and before you ask, yesterday kinda bombed.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t ask, here, the blueprints I need copies of for today.¡± T was already up and working in a machine resembling a coffee maker. ¡°Okay¡­¡± Dejected, Velvet went to the table, raising her arms to stretch herself before picking the drawing tools. ¡°Oh, didn¡¯t you want magic artifacts? This one has sigils.¡± Pointing to the blueprint depicting a mechanical butterfly, she spoke to Hyde. ¡°Hmm¡­ she is giving you very useless blueprints, or, at least, very common knowledge ones. I saw these butterflies in a few shops.¡± ¡°Ngh, makes sense. We barely know each other, and I¡¯m not her selected, so- Oh, this one has chains, look. I need a way to repair the chain pieces.¡± The next few days went like that, since Velvet wasn¡¯t interested in searching for more problems. Also, she didn¡¯t dream again with Lothrigern, but something made her feel like He was stalling on purpose. The last day before the Selection, T gave her the alchemy set. ¡°Do you have any preference on your Selector?¡± She asked her that same day. ¡°That they like me!¡± She laughed. ¡°No, I¡¯m fine as long as I get into the Mergifari, really.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t think like that, read the offers closely.¡± C said. He had come back earlier with food. Those past days, Velvet had noticed that if she or C didn¡¯t bring or make food, T would simply forget to eat. ¡°Or you might end up spending the rest of your life making blueprints.¡± ¡°Become my Selector then!¡± Velvet joked. She had asked him a few times, but C always answered that he was ¡®too lazy for teaching¡¯. ¡°I can¡¯t, I¡¯m retired.¡± ¡°You¡¯re twenty seven, and haven¡¯t worked a single day in your life.¡± T said, before turning to Velvet. ¡°Forget about him, but remember, if the deal terms include ¡®I¡¯ll teach you in exchange for help in one thing¡¯, ¡®Join my family¡¯ or ¡®Loyalty towards me¡¯, you¡¯ll do better ignoring them.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll keep that in mind, thanks.¡± She wasn¡¯t planning on accepting anyone with such conditions, even before T told her. ¡°I have a worse one.¡± C said. ¡°Is it ¡®guess the terms and consequences¡¯?¡± ¡°Nah, that one is against the rules. This one is worse.¡± ¡°Is it ¡®Pick me and get a thousand auris if¡­ something¡¯. I know ¡­ used that one once.¡± T said. ¡°Nope.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± Velvet said. ¡°Is it ¡®Guess who¡¯?¡± ¡°Nuh huh.¡± ¡°Stop playing and say it already.¡± ¡°How many Udulluays are in the Mergifari?¡± C asked. ¡°There¡¯s only one.¡± Velvet answered. Since Udulluay was a hivemind devil, it was just one devil that possessed numerous bodies. ¡°You¡¯re such a smart cookie. Let me rephrase, how many bodies does Udulluay possess?¡± ¡°More than one but less than infinite.¡± Velvet grinned, understanding the trick question. ¡°See? I¡¯m perfect as your selected!¡± ¡°Yes, you¡¯re almost making me reconsider.¡± This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Guess.¡± ¡°So you¡¯re going to pick me? That¡¯s great!¡± She cheered. T sighed, knowing she was going to get disappointed later. ¡°Are you two done? Get out of my shop, I want to close.¡± ¡°... Aren¡¯t you even a bit sad that we are parting ways?¡± Velvet said, while being chased out by T. ¡°If you¡¯re not an idiot, we will see each other in a few days.¡± ¡°But I don¡¯t know who you are!¡± ¡°But I do! Get out, I need to pack stuff for tomorrow!¡± She finally managed to push Velvet out, even when she was grabbing the edges of the door. ¡°Damn, she has some arm strength¡­¡± Velvet complained. She turned to look at C, but he had left already. Sighting, she also left. ¡­ Like the time she dreamed of the Mergifari¡¯s entrance, the metallic staircase was rusty, but didn¡¯t look capable of breaking. But the difference this time was that she was climbing them, together with her suitcase. Step by step, she walked around the cliff, and, step by step, the market was becoming smaller and smaller, until it became a mesh of blurry colors below. ¡°This looked easier from down there¡­¡± Velvet complained, after walking upwards for an hour. ¡°But I haven¡¯t seen anyone else climbing¡­¡± The concealment spell had been lifted, since she was away from the market, so maybe there was another spell taking place. ¡°Why is everything here so secretive?¡± ¡­ Half an hour later, she arrived at the entrance. The Mergifari¡¯s lightower was smaller than she expected, but since it was only used for the Selection, it made sense. A green wooden iron door, damaged by the elements and embedded on the stone precipice separated the inside from the outside. It wasn¡¯t grand nor elegant, more simplistic in design than some of the doors decorating the shops at the market. Velvet knocked, and the door opened to a stone spiral staircase. Does the climbing ever stop? She didn¡¯t want to take a break, being so close to the actual Mergifari after all this time. Still, she forced herself to take a little rest, since she had to do the demonstration to draw in potential Selectors. She planned to use her paper figurines for that, because both her chaining charms and the actual chain were recipes for problems. And the chain wasn¡¯t even fixed. Velvet had some ideas for fixing it, but found it better to postpone them until entering the Mergifari. After resting, she started climbing again. A small window let her see the sea, and, far, far away, a white zone started showing itself. Permafrost, the frozen continent. Encompassing over a third part of the planet¡¯s surface. The Mergifari was the closest habitable area, and it was still very far away. Just looking at the frozen coast made Velvet feel a chill run through her spine. She turned her face away, and kept walking. This time, the stairway wasn¡¯t eternal, and Velvet arrived at another wooden door, where Udulluay was waiting, on top of a black staff. ¡°What title do you desire?¡± He asked, once they met eye to eye. ¡°Title?¡± ¡°Every mage needs a title.¡± ¡°Do you have any examples?¡± She really didn¡¯t have any in mind, and no one did warn her about needing one! ¡°Hasdrubal, the All-Knowing; Queen¡¯s Arsenal, Winter; Kartal, Third Scale.¡± Why is Kartal the most normal sounding? ¡°Did they pick those titles when they were younger?¡± She wondered if a teenager Hasdrubal was really All-Knowing. ¡°No, they got those titles after becoming official mages.¡± ¡°Can you give me non official mages titles?¡± She found the previous examples a bit over the top. ¡°Udulluay only gives information about public knowledge.¡± So no. ¡°Hmm¡­ What title fits me?¡± She was asking all three of them, herself included. Hyde was the first to make a suggestion. ¡°Velvet, Hat Lady.¡± ¡°That¡¯s corny¡­ What are the rules for a title?¡± ¡°It needs to be the truth.¡± She stood in silence for a few minutes. ¡°Ok, I got it.¡± ¡­ Adeline Graham looked at the novice mage on the stage. Another noble from an Arhontissian family. Every Selection, there¡¯s more Arhontissian and less Charlampian mages¡­ She held back a sigh, watching the mage enter the door to the Mergifari. After that, another mage entered, one Adeline had heard of, since it was the one that killed her son. Dressed in a brown city dress, with a low top hat, and long orange hair. ¡°Velvet Consestella Dobastro,¡± The Director¡¯s voice announced. ¡°The Unchained.¡± Chapter 57. Selection Winter¡¯s face lit up. Finally, one of the mages she wanted! Nereus still hadn¡¯t arrived, so Velvet would be her first selected. She was going to offer part of the Queen¡¯s resources, after all! No mage could resist that! Of course, Winter didn¡¯t know that Velvet, together with Alrai, had bullied two of the Queen¡¯s selected, those being Igern and Creftalia. If she did, maybe her decision of picking Velvet would be changed. But what you don¡¯t know can¡¯t hurt you in the present! Winter watched Velvet¡¯s demonstration. As someone that had already seen several Selections, she no longer found any novice magic show remarkable, and that feeling was shared between several official mages. That¡¯s why she found more interesting watching the novice¡¯s trip to the Mergifari. Velvet¡¯s show consisted on using teleporting paper figurines, making them jump around and explode on several targets she had set before. She is trying to get away from the supporting position that knowledge mages usually have. Therefore, she is already aware that knowledge mages aren¡¯t really needed. Winter analyzed Velvet¡¯s choice on the demonstration. Showing that she is versatile, and unconfined to just making charms. Once the demonstration was over, Winter picked a glass shard, filling and pushing it until the shard fell and entered the fog on the floor. ¡­ Velvet watched the Mergifari¡¯s Director, waiting for her to check the glass pieces in front of her. She had counted six pie- The Director threw one to the floor. Five pieces. Five is great. Velvet refrained herself from jumping from one foot to another in anticipation, but the Director was slooow. Cmon, there¡¯s only five! Give them to me already! The Director looked at the last piece for a few seconds, before putting it down and making the pieces appear in front of Velvet, neatly arranged. Almost instantly, she picked the first one, reading it. Siberiald Ropertti. She almost dropped the piece to the floor, fumbling with it. A crackle resonated from the official mage¡¯s seats. Looking up, Velvet¡¯s gaze met with a pair of mismatched eyes. She looked away immediately, her attention on the piece. Who puts just his name?! She screamed in her mind. The glass shard had no offer or demand, with only Siberiald Ropertti¡¯s name. What useless gamble is it?! At least put some-oh. Son of a- She finally realized Siberiald¡¯s gamble. He is betting on the other offers being dangerous choices. Picking him allows me to enter the Mergifari without ending up in an unfair demand¡­ But with him as a teacher. Velvet felt a shiver run through her back, setting the glass down. I still have four more¡­ The next one sure is better! Catrine Maneely. Velvet flinched, this time unable to contain her grimace. This one had an actually nice and simple offer. Accepting to teach in exchange for three years of work. Hm. There¡¯s no way for Maneely to know I am the one that bought her clothes at a low price and stole her chain, so¡­ After recovering from the shock, Velvet started connecting dots. The Maneelys sell clothes, and there is another family that I know deals with clothes. The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. The Grahams. Cornelius talked about it, after all. So they are connected¡­ Hm, I guess it¡¯s a nice way to get revenge without raising much suspicion. Velvet set down the glass shard, determined to pick Siberiald¡¯s before that one. The third one. Queen¡¯s Arsenal, Winter. Oh. I¡¯ve heard this title. A bit more motivated, she started reading that offer. Winter offered to teach Velvet as one of the Queen¡¯s chosen, making no distinction or discrimination, giving her all she needed for her studies. The demand was, however, ten years of work after becoming an official mage. More than three times the time the Maneelys asked for¡­ But the offer is a hundred times better¡­ Velvet liked that offer, even when it probably included dealing with Igern and Creftalia. Oh, but I¡¯m sure those two would warm up to me in no time! I¡¯m a great person and a better friend! Even then¡­ ten years¡­ I don¡¯t know if I have that time. She wanted to find the chained man, after all. Going for the fourth piece, another name that she heard of was written. Hasdrubal. Oh, he doesn¡¯t use his title? How humble. She read the offer. Learn under the best knowledge mage. Hasrubal offered to teach her everything a knowledge mage would need. The demand was, however, the sharing of knowledge. For every hundred things Hasdrubal taught her, Velvet would have to teach him something he didn¡¯t know. Wha-? How does he expect me to teach him something he doesn¡¯t know? Isn¡¯t he All-Knowing? Velvet thought about the dream symbols. That was the only thing she possessed that no one did. That was dangerous. Hasdrubal could either help her immensely with the dream, or he could simply brainwash Velvet. She didn¡¯t hope to cheat Hasdrubal. He was the knowledge mage number one for something. Putting down that shard, she picked the last one. Hm? I cannot see the name unless I answer a question? Velvet noticed the difference from the others when she grabbed it. The question appeared slowly, saying: This question can only be answered one time, if you fail once, forget it. How many bodies does Udulluay possess? The answer is a number, and cannot be your previous answers. Velvet''s mood did a swing, at first she was extremely happy, then her mood sank upon reading the question. Why the Udulluays again?! I don¡¯t know how many there are! Mister, you are extremely petty! Velvet started thinking. There was no way for anyone to know how many Udulluays were, so the question was a trap. Reading it again, she put her brain to work. Was it bodies? Or possession? The answer is a number¡­ What were bodies for the Udulluay? Was there a true body, and the other Udulluays were like hands or fingers? No, Udulluay talks equally about the other ones, there seems to be no difference between them. Possession? Possess means own, is there an ownership over the Udulluays? No, but as a hivemind, you can consider they share the mind and own the bodies. The answer is a number, and cannot be your previous answers. Velvet didn¡¯t like that wording. First, her previous answers weren¡¯t numbers, so why the clarification? Also, it said the answer was a number, not that the correct answer was a number. That was important. And Velvet still didn¡¯t know the answer. She looked at the piece of glass with disdain, as if it was the shard¡¯s fault. Answer, answer¡­ She had a little idea, and hated it. If that was the correct choice C was more petty than she thought. Looking at the glass piece, she gave her answer. The glass¡¯s lower half started getting scrapped on its own, a name appearing. Velvet sighed. Like Siberiald, he didn¡¯t offer anything, nor did he demand it. But, unlike Siberiald, Velvet was choosing him. Chapter 58. Reconsider Tristan saw Velvet looking at the glass shards. None of them were hers, she had already warned Velvet about that. Even then, she only got five¡­ She thought, worried. Usually, two or three glass shards were useless or ¡®rotten¡¯, which would give Velvet only two options. Siberiald¡¯s laughter made it clear that one was his, and Velvet¡¯s face upon the second also meant trouble. Tristan waited, hoping one of the shards was a good choice. ¡­ Winter was happy, and confident in her victory, even more when she saw Velvet only getting five shards. No one should be able to match my offer. She hummed. The only one that could is the Queen, and she showed no interest in her! She only asked for ten years of work. Remunerated, of course. Which was a plus, actually, since that meant Velvet would work for the court. And that meant money. I¡¯m offering almost unlimited knowledge, a stable and high income working place, and a brilliant future! Only a fool would refuse! And, since Velvet is no fool, she is as good as mine already! Winter smiled with confidence, taking a sip from her tea. That¡¯s how a real Arhontissian mage negotiates! We are the best continent! She was so happy with her ideas, she barely noticed Velvet spending too many seconds on the last shard. Why would she? She had already won, of course. First I will introduce her to Creftalia. The poor girl is too shy, so maybe they do the introvert-extrovert thing and become friends. Later, I can reintroduce her to Igern¡­ they started on the wrong side in the airship, but it¡¯s nothing that can¡¯t be fixed! Igern¡­ he is almost like a cat, who you need to put close to the door so that he can sniff the other cats first¡­ Oh, it¡¯ll be fine! Winter watched Velvet put down the last shard, seemingly having decided on one already. Smiling to herself, she played with her tea. Go, say my name already, prove everyone how great of a nation Arhontissa is! The Director gave the signal for Velvet to speak. Queen¡¯s Arsenal, Winter! ¡°Ceres d¡¯Employed.¡± ¡°Eh?¡± Winter said, her tea freezing suddenly. She must¡¯ve heard wrong. Yes, clearly, Velvet just said her name. Obviously. Incorporating herself in a fast motion, and getting a stare from the Queen, she waited for her fellow official mages to confirm that she had indeed heard wrong. ¡°Who is that mage?¡± One of them whispered to another. He didn¡¯t seem to know who Winter was! Even when he was also Arhontissian! Incredible! ¡°Ceres¡­? Never heard of him.¡± What Ceres? That¡¯s not how you spell Winter! While Winter kept on being delusional, Tristan was having her own internal struggles. Really? Did he get bored of doing nothing? Well, I¡¯m happy for Velvet, Ceres has always been lazy, but he is not bad. ¡°D¡¯Employed? I don¡¯t remember that being your title.¡± A voice coming from the upper seats seemed contrary to the decision. Velvet looked at the owner. An old man with a long white beard, and strange looking eyes that made her feel dizzy. He was looking down to the side, staring at another man. This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. That man, who she supposed was C, or Ceres, had loose and simple clothes, brown hair that crossed his shoulders tied low in an unkempt fashion, and a few days beard. Together with his brown eyes, he looked like a common man one could find in any casino and not a mage. Ceres made an exaggerated sigh, relaxing more his seating position. ¡°Hm? Seems my ears are a bit clogged, I barely heard what you blabbed, old man.¡± Hasdrubal clenched his teeth in an imperceptible manner. If Velvet went with him, he could forget about negotiating for the spells. Not because Ceres was loyal or whatever, but because he was the worst type of person! He was petty, impulsive, impolite, rude, lazy¡­ If Ceres knew Hasdrubal wanted something from his selected, he would just use it to mock him, and he could forget about obtaining it! So he needed to make Velvet rethink her choice. ¡°Your title. D¡¯Employed.¡± He made sure to pronounce every word slowly and carefully. ¡°It¡¯s not accurate. Your current title is: The Embarrassment of the Mergifari, Ceres the Unemployed.¡± ¡°Oh? Is that all you wanted to say? Okay.¡± Ceres reclined back again, ignoring Hasdrubal stare. ¡°What I am saying is that there¡¯s been a lie on the offer.¡± ¡°So you''re saying the Director is allowing fraud. You should''ve started with that.¡± Ceres said, making Hasdrubal, and a few mages flinch in panic, their gazes moving to the Director, who didn¡¯t react much. ¡°I am not implying that, you-!¡± Hasdrubal cut himself, taking a deep breath. ¡°What I¡¯m saying is that you didn¡¯t tell the whole truth, and she should have the option to reconsider.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not changing my choice.¡± Now it was Velvet¡¯s turn to speak. ¡°The Embarrassment of the Mergifari, Ceres the Unemployed is my Selector.¡± Hasdrubal kept silent after those words. If she wasn¡¯t reconsidering knowing that, insisting might be detrimental. Therefore, the Selection must go on. Now Ceres had to give an insignia to Velvet, one every official mage had, that marked her as Ceres'' apprentice. ¡°Hey.¡± Ceres spoke to Velvet when she got close to receive the insignia. ¡°Did you get an offer from Hasdrubal?¡± He didn''t exactly whisper, nor spoke harder. ¡°One for exchanging information. And he didn¡¯t use his All-Knowing title.¡± Velvet snitched in the same tone of voice, letting several mages hear. ¡°Ohhh, so he¡¯s pissed, pissed. Nice.¡± Ceres made a twisted smirk, giving an iron piece to Velvet. ¡°Alright, now go to the Mergifari, you¡¯re in.¡± She entered the door to the Mergifari, leaving the Selection room behind. ¡­ Looking at the piece of iron that was her insignia, which looked like a flat, metallic Udulluay, she walked down a hallway, which seemed to be taking her to the other side of the Mergifari, stopping when she saw a familiar figure. Alrai Siberetti, who also saw her. ¡°Oh, aren¡¯t you a fast climber?¡± He said, getting close to her. ¡°So, who picked you?¡± He looked at the insignia, but didn¡¯t recognize it. ¡°Guess. Why are you stopping here like a colorful roadblock?¡± ¡°I was waiting for you, my dear Velvatosta.¡± ¡°So Ethra still hasn¡¯t entered.¡± She concluded, watching how Alrai¡¯s smile grew at that. ¡°What about my friends? Have they entered yet?¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t the first, you know¡­ But no, no one you knew has crossed my path.¡± The sound of footsteps stopped their chitchat. They came from the Mergifari, not the Selection room, so either a student had come back to search for their companions, or someone wanted to go to the Selection room. An Arhontissian noble. She guessed, seeing what the guy was wearing. He had golden eyes, Velvet noticed, after he went to the wall opposite them, probably waiting for someone. She turned to Alrai. ¡°Your dad wanted to select me, you know?¡± ¡°Of course! Who doesn¡¯t want you?¡± ¡°No one, I tell you.¡± Another sound of steps made them stop, this one coming from the Selection room. This time it was Igern, which made both Velvet and Alrai cheer, trying to be annoying. Igern stopped after seeing them, grimacing. But that was nothing in comparison to the face he made upon seeing the other guy. That one was of pure hate. It lasted less than a second, but Velvet was a knowledge mage. And Alrai wasn¡¯t stupid. After pondering for a second, Igern started walking again, apparently planning to ignore all of them and go inside. ¡°The Queen wants us to wait for the rest.¡± The unknown guy said. ¡°If those are the Queen''s wishes.¡± Igern stopped, and, deciding he didn¡¯t want to stay in the middle of the hallway, he went to the wall where Alrai and Velvet were. Both of them went instantly next to him, surrounding him. ¡°Who is he? Man, you looked pissed!¡± Igern opened his mouth, probably to tell both of them to fuck off and die, but, remembering he was under the Queen, he took a deep breath instead. ¡°The Chosen one, Dianthus.¡± Chapter 59. Prophecy ¡°Chosen for what?¡± Velvet asked. ¡°To fulfill a prophecy.¡± ¡°What prophecy?¡± When Igern didn¡¯t answer, she started nudging lighty at him. Well, she intended to, but the glare Igern gave her took all the intentions to do so away. ¡°I cannot believe you are gatekeeping a prophecy from me¡­¡± Not a shy person, she turned to Dianthus, who seemed to be pretending to analyze a potted plant. ¡°What does the prophecy say, Dianthus?¡± Dianthus shrugged. ¡°Oh, ask the Queen, she is also gatekeeping it from me.¡± ¡°She is not.¡± Igern said between his teeth, offended. ¡°The prophecy is incomplete. You know that.¡± He raised his voice a bit, and Velvet took a few steps back, not wanting to be in the middle of the crossfire. ¡°What if the prophecy is about killing the Queen?¡± Alrai said, with a lack of both tact and room reading. ¡°Imagine.¡± Dianthus mocked, and, if Igern¡¯s looks could kill, he¡¯d be dead a few times already. Some shy footsteps sounded, seemingly alerted from the conversation. An unknown mage got close, but, finding the hallway vibes extremely hostile, didn¡¯t dare to cross. ¡°Oh, we don¡¯t bite, don¡¯t worry!¡± Velvet said, with the intention of encouraging the mage to cross. He pondered for a bit, but ended up rushing past them, towards the Mergifari. The mood got uncomfortably silent after that. Until Alrai clicked his tongue and went back next to Velvet. ¡°You know, prophecies are a speciality of gamblers.¡± So you want to keep provoking Igern, and want to use me as a shield? Velvet noticed his intentions, but went along with them. ¡°I am aware of that, but don¡¯t they have a chance to miss?¡± ¡°Eh.¡± Alrai made a so-so motion with his hand. ¡°That¡¯s why the prophecy is incomplete. You cannot change what you don¡¯t know. If someone tells you, ¡®Tomorrow you will eat an omelet¡¯, you can very much not do it. And fuck the prophecy.¡± ¡°And¡­¡± Now, Alrai grinned. ¡°If the full prophecy is ¡®You will kill the Queen¡¯, how do you think the knowing party would act?¡± ¡°By killing the Chosen one.¡± Velvet concluded. ¡°But he is alive. So the prophecy cannot be about killing the Queen. Shut up already.¡± Igern, already at his patience limit, warned them. ¡°Maybe the prophecy is about overthrowing the Arhontissian monarchy.¡± Velvet said, now standing behind Alrai, using him as a shield to poke at Igern. ¡°I am right here, you know.¡± Dianthus said, not really bothered. ¡°Can¡¯t you at least ask me about what I want first?¡± ¡°What do you want?¡± Velvet asked. ¡°A chair, my legs are numb from standing.¡± ¡°A simple one or cushioned?¡± ¡°Cushioned would be great.¡± ¡°Well I have none.¡± Then why did you keep talking? Igern wanted to shout, even when he wasn¡¯t part of the conversation. Luckily for him, footsteps sounded. Unluckily for him, it was Ethra¡¯s. Ethra¡¯s gaze went first to Igern, then to Velvet and Alrai, who were next to each other. He seemed to ignore Dianthus. Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. Alrai took an exaggerated step away from Velvet. ¡°It¡¯s not what it seems like!¡± Ethra¡¯s deadpan expression didn¡¯t change a bit. ¡°I didn¡¯t say anything.¡± ¡°We are not friends!¡± Alrai kept going. ¡°That¡¯s not what you said yesterday! You even gave me a friendship bracelet!¡± Velvet said, in a fake offended tone. ¡°Lies! You homewrecker! Don¡¯t believe a word she says, Ethra!¡± He dashed towards him with dramatic steps, which ended with Ethra moving out of the way, and Alrai having to spin to stop sliding. ¡°Man, I¡¯m kinda envious of Charlampian mages freestyle.¡± Dianthus said. ¡°Who are you?¡± Ethra asked, finishing his walk to the populated zone. ¡°He¡¯s the Chosen one.¡± Velvet and Alrai said at the same time. ¡°I can introduce myself¡­¡± ¡°Sorry!¡± Now they spoke at the same time on purpose, watching Ethra roll his eyes. Footsteps sounded again. Huh, isn¡¯t this one too fast? Ethra just came a few minutes ago. This time it was Nereus. He seemed to be fidgeting with something. ¡°How did you finish the demonstration so fast?¡± Velvet asked when he got close. ¡°What demonstration?¡± He asked back, making Igern turn to look at him. ¡°The show? To make Selectors interested in you¡­?¡± Nereus tilted his head like a dog. ¡°Winter is my Selector.¡± He told Velvet with confidence, even when that wasn¡¯t what she asked. Dianthus turned his head to look at Igern. He was the one supposed to tell Nereus and the other Arhontissian mages about the Selection, but, since Nereus ended up going with Velvet and Gertine, he didn¡¯t have the opportunity. Igern knew that, refusing to make any comment. At least, there were no more mages that he disliked that could make an appearance, since all of them were currently next to him. At least, it cannot get worse. He massaged his temples, feeling the headache. Nereus kept on fidgeting with something, until he finally gave up. ¡°How do I open these things?¡± Oh, he means the containers. Right, his pets are inside. Velvet was going to answer, when she got interrupted. ¡°Smash them on the ground.¡± Alrai said. Almost everyone knew how bad of an idea that was, except the only one who had to know. And, sometimes knowing what was going to happen, how it was going to happen, and why i was going to happen, was not enough to stop something from happening. Nereus smashed the balls on the ground, instantly. And, instantly, the contents spilled out. Yes, it included a wolf and a rat, but also a big amount of soil, a few trees, plants and water, filling part of the corridor. Realizing he had fucked up, Nereus had the decency to look more surprised than ashamed, while Alrai lost it, laughing so hard he bent over. ¡°Why?¡± Igern said, dragging his hand across his face. ¡°Why can¡¯t you think?¡± Nereus turned to look at Velvet, who, unlike Alrai, was actually doing an effort to contain her laughter, covering her mouth with her hand, trembling. Then he looked at Dianthus, who had a bit more decency, just pressing his lips in a thin line. The only ones aside from Igern that didn¡¯t find the situation hilarious were Ethra, who was just shaking the dirt from his clothes, and Nereus¡¯ pets, who looked more confused than anything. And Udulluay, who appeared in that same moment, landing on a black staff. He looked at the pile of dirt and forest in silence, waiting for the others to calm down. When they stopped laughing, he moved a wing, making the spilled contents disappear, as if an eraser had crossed over them. ¡°Those containers you broke were a temporary loan from Udulluay.¡± Nereus flinched. ¡°I am sorry.¡± Udulluay didn¡¯t answer his apology, continuing. ¡°You will plant and supervise the growth for similar plants and trees in the greenhouse, until you make back what you broke.¡± He nodded, and Udulluay left. ¡°What happened?¡± Gertine asked from behind Velvet, making her jump. ¡°Do you always walk without making noise?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± She looked around, and her eyes met with Ethra, but she wasn¡¯t interested in a staring contest, looking again at Velvet. ¡°Well, I was waiting for you!¡± Velvet noticed that, tugging Gertine to move. ¡°We can go now, let¡¯s go.¡± Nereus came back to his senses, choosing to not stay with Igern, who looked murderous right now, and leave with Velvet and Gertine, who were going to the Mergifari. ¡°Oh, we¡¯re also done here, so we can just go together!¡± Alrai said, which made Gertine and Nereus flinch. ¡°Nope.¡± Velvet said, not turning back to look at them. ¡°If I see you following us, I will bomb the hallway and bury you two alive.¡± ¡°Is that a promise?¡± Alrai said. ¡°No, it¡¯s a prophecy.¡± Chapter 60. Illusory or real A few minutes ago. An everlasting, constantly fluttering pile of books arrived at the hallway. One where multiple eyes dropped ink on the blank pages, writing everything they saw. The book''s mass expanded and contracted, breathing. Its eyes looked around incessantly, and moved in unison every time Alrai moved, keeping a tight check on him. Under the illusory mass of books and eyes, was Velvet. And, by reading Velvet''s thoughts, he knew she liked his golden eyes... Until she compared them to a glass filled with two mage eyes that sold for 15000 auris (and yes, she spent too many seconds thinking on how much Dianthus'' golden eyes would sell for). Dianthus didn''t know her name by word, he knew because of Alrai''s thoughts. Alrai. Thin black threads were nailed on his extremities, and pulled and released it''s hold as he moved. Some threads even went under his throat, pulling at his vocal chords. At the other end of the threads was the puppeteer. A wooden doll, dressed like a harlequin, with hollow sockets for eyes, and a smiling empty hole as mouth. It pulled Alrai''s body strings with its long fingers. Two other small arms came from its chest, and those were the ones pulling words from Alrai''s throat. Dianthus looked to the plant to his side. At least it looked normal. It was not that Velvet and Alrai weren¡¯t normal, it was just that, for him, that¡¯s how every knowledge mage, and gambling mage looked. He could make it so that those things were invisible to him, but it took constant effort, and anyway, he was already used to it. The familiar sound of scraping announced Igern¡¯s entrance. Dianthus tried to not get into his thoughts this time, but it was almost impossible, since Igern basically was shouting them. Can¡¯t you keep your thoughts to yourself? And those two are thinking about how nice your ass looks, really now? Get some taste. An inverted broken crown was on top of his head, and several weapons made of glass were stuck crossing his chest, letting Dianthus see part of his insides. He sometimes wondered if those organs were illusory or real. He had called Igern a porcupine a few times, but his companions took it as a comment on his personality. Stopping Igern from leaving, he received some threatening thoughts back. Oh well, he could take him anytime, were he to try and act on them. And then he ¡®introduced¡¯ him. I can introduce myself. Dianthus thought, even when he made no intention to do so. He used a spell to stop seeing the mages¡¯ auras, since, if they started speaking about him, he kind of needed to know where to look. And he chose to look at Velvet, now that the eyes were no longer looking at him so intensely, noticing a small green light next to her. One that no one else noticed. "Hey, wake up." He spoke in his mind. Dianthus didn''t have a familiar, but he had something better. He didn¡¯t know exactly what it was, but he was confident that it was superior to any other option. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. "I don''t sleep. What do you want?" "That green light. On the girl." Dianthus heard a ''Hm, lemme-'' followed by a curse. He waited. "That''s Lothrigern''s Beacon. Or mark, or curse, whatever you wanna use. Ahh, really now, of the most annoying f..." The voice cut itself. ¡°And who¡¯s that?¡± ¡°... C¡¯mon now, you learned that in class. One of the Big Names. And an ever bigger problem. I would tell you to keep away from that girl, but alas¡­¡± ¡°I am the Chosen One, and if I try to run away from fate¡¯s shenanigans, the whole world would bend itself in strange ways to make me end up in an ¡®unfortunate situation¡¯.¡± Dianthus knew how fate worked, already accustomed to it. He would not deal with Igern, the Queen, and a lot of problems if that wasn¡¯t the case. ¡°Ngh, still, it¡¯s Lothrigern. That girl has her days counted.¡± ¡°I¡¯m I supposed to try to save her?¡± ¡°No, Lothrigern is vindictive. If you poke at him, he is going to respond. And he usually responds fast.¡± ¡°I am the Chosen One, I cannot get killed.¡± ¡°That¡¯s stupid, you imbecile! You cannot get killed by things under fate¡¯s control, but Lothrigern is outside that. And he has the highest Chosen One body count, so go poke at him only if you wanna add a number.¡± ¡°So, shouldn¡¯t fate protect me from that meeting? Why am I finding someone related to him?¡± ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s probably because I¡¯m also here, so it¡¯s my fault.¡± The voice didn¡¯t look apologetic at that, and Dianthus wasn¡¯t exactly worried about getting killed. He had escaped from very close calls to death, saved by coincidences ranging from ¡®it has some sense¡¯ to ¡®it could only happen in a million years and only to one person¡¯, so he was pretty confident in surviving. He almost wanted to mess with Velvet, to see if Lothrigern actually harmed him. Dianthus didn¡¯t really care about why Velvet was marked by Lothrigern. He was the Chosen One, the protagonist of the story, the- ¡°They are speaking to you, pay attention.¡± He stopped pondering, looking at Velvet again, who asked something. He didn¡¯t need to listen, just hearing Velvet¡¯s thoughts told him about what she wanted. ¡°Oh, ask the Queen, she is also gatekeeping it from me.¡± Of course, that pissed Igern off. More. Oh well. ¡°Imagine.¡± He told Alrai. He loved that word, it didn¡¯t answer anything, but it was multiuse. They chitchated for a while, until Ethra appeared. Dianthus stopped the spell, wanting to see which Paradigm he had. An illusory armor made of broken mirror shards tied together with a red thread. Sharp nails made of small mirror pieces grew on Ethra¡¯s body, and one was strangling his neck with force. Pride, hm? Close to Igern. Seeing Velvet¡¯s thoughts, he more or less understood their situation, mocking it. Nereus entered soon. Dianthus had never really talked to him, but he recognized the three enormous dog heads that grew from his back. One of them had curled horns, similar to a goat¡¯s. Another had two mouths and three eyes, like the deformed lambs that sometimes were born in farms. The last one had no eyes, and it sniffed the air constantly. The three of them reacted to Igern, showing their teeth and growling. Not that Igern could notice, since the only one that saw those things were Dianthus. After smashing the containers, Gertine appeared, clad in a dress made of roots that grew on her own skin, twisting and turning on itself, producing a sweet smelling nectar from its owner¡¯s blood. Some flowers, dead and dried, hung from her body, moving slowly with Gertine¡¯s movements. Some roots slid towards them, but stopped before touching anyone. Dianthus always wondered how the mages would react if they saw what they were becoming. No, becoming wasn¡¯t the word. How would they react, if they could see how an Esca really looked. Chapter 61. First Tower Ignorant to someone else''s plights, Velvet exited the hallway, finding herself walking over the stone floor of a garden. The path was surrounded by rose bushes on both sides, in a straight line broken for a crossroad every now and then. A white edifice was in the distance, and three towers were placed north, northeast and northwest from where they came out. Further away, a forest could be seen, almost engulfing the Mergifari¡¯s safe zone, giving a threatening aura. Navros, Nereus¡¯ wolf, now free from its container, sniffed the roses. ¡°Um.¡± Velvet started, confused. ¡°Doesn¡¯t this garden feel too nice? After all that darkness on the market, the whole climb to the lighthouse and the concealment spell¡­¡± ¡°I find it relaxing.¡± Nereus said. ¡°I also find it relaxing¡­ but more confusing than relaxing!¡± She explained. ¡°I would be even less confused if the roses were black, not pink.¡± Nereus pointed to a flower. ¡°That one is white.¡± ¡°These are petriroses, not roses. The petals are sharper.¡± Gertine said. ¡°Wow.¡± Velvet said, making a ticked off smile. ¡°I missed you guys so much.¡± ¡°We met for two days.¡± ¡°Nereus, I need to present you to my friend, Irony.¡± ¡°There¡¯s only us three here.¡± ¡°And thus, my point is proved.¡± Nereus tilted his head. ¡°You didn¡¯t prove anything.¡± ¡°Anyway¡­¡± Velvet looked at Gertine. ¡°Where do we go now?¡± ¡°Like you two, I¡¯ve also never entered the Mergifari¡­¡± Those words did nothing to stop Velvet and Nereus from staring at her. ¡°Sigh¡­ first, we need to get a housing plan. How much money can you spend monthly? ¡­ Velvet stop making that face, you look constipated.¡± ¡°I thought housing was free¡­¡± ¡°Nothing is free¡­ Well, I don¡¯t know if there¡¯s free options. Maybe you can go live in the woods?¡± Velvet grimaced at Gertine¡¯s comment. ¡°I am a lady, do you want to put me in a hut in the woods like a witch?¡± ¡°Your choice, your money.¡± ¡°Ngh¡­ I want to see the options first¡­ Nereus, what about you?¡± She didn¡¯t know Nereus¡¯ monetary status, he had never spent money in front of Velvet, and he was here from winning a Tournament. Shrugging, he answered. ¡°Igern takes care of those things.¡± ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you be with their group right now for that?¡± ¡°They are still inside, I¡¯ll wait for them to come out and cross the garden.¡± ¡°Just make sure this time you don¡¯t get lost, Igern doesn¡¯t look like the kind to search for you.¡± Gertine said. He had left Nereus to his devices the previous time, so there was a chance for him to do it again. So Igern is the kind that likes to be chased, not to chase, hm? Velvet mocked silently. Looking around, she called for Nereus¡¯ attention. ¡°Hey, can Navros eat petriroses?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°He shouldn¡¯t.¡± Gertine explained, even when she made no motion to stop the wolf. ¡°Anyway, let¡¯s go to the First Tower. Depending on how many novice mages are remaining, the Selection can take up to three days, so we better get accommodations first, before the demand gets too much.¡± This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. ¡°Okay, okay.¡± They traveled through the garden, until arriving at one of the towers. White stone made the exterior, and some golden details, in diamond shapes, decorated the wall. A big mechanical clock was on top of the gate, showing the time, 11:45. Some mages were already entering and exiting, but there weren¡¯t that many. Velvet and company entered, going to a counter, where a girl with cat ears was acting as secretary. A girl Velvet knew. ¡°Mirrs? Do you also work here?" The girl looked exactly like the owner of the Arena where Velvet fought once. "I''m not Mirrs.¡± Not-Mirrs clarified, smiling at her. ¡°She is my sister." "Oh, my bad. You are...?" "Murrs." Velvet kept silent for a few seconds, taken aback. "How many siblings are you?" "Five." Before Velvet could ask, she continued. "Yes, our names are just what you''re thinking." Velvet made a sly grin. "Your parents sound like funny guys." "We were made in a lab." "And unethical." Murrs hummed, finishing that particular conversation, looking at her group. ¡°Did you three come here to pick a room?¡± ¡°Ah, yes. Well, only us two for now.¡± Murrs pulled out a book, making Velvet remember the time when Mirrs did the same. She decided to let Gertine pick first. Murrs tried to recommend several options, but Gertine¡¯s one word answers, hums, or barely motions of acknowledging the girl ended up making her surrender and wait for her to decide. ¡°This one.¡± She said after flipping pages for a while. Velvet peeked, seeing a nice, ample room that went for 100 auris per month. All rooms had a private bathroom, with a bath big enough to cover two persons minimum, since the mages needed a safe way to purify themselves from miasma. Gertine¡¯s room was around the middle options, also including a double bed, a terrace with a small garden and one room for alchemy. ¡°Oh, that one looks nice!¡± Velvet commented over Gertine¡¯s shoulder. Well, next to Gertine¡¯s shoulder, since she was taller than her. Murrs gave Gertine a few papers, talking. ¡°You can choose to pay a few months in advance, with a 10% discount. 20% discount if it''s over ten months.¡± Reading over the papers, Velvet saw a few clauses that informed that any money already paid would be kept in case of the tenant''s death, which explained the discount. Gertine paid for five months in advance, so 450 auris. Now it was her turn. Before Murrs could open her mouth to recommend anything, Velvet opened hers first. ¡°Show me the cheapest options.¡± Murrs¡¯ smile twitched, but, unlike Mirrs, she didn¡¯t take the full book, and just went to the last pages. The choices weren¡¯t bad, just simple. No extra rooms, just one bed, a wardrobe and a bathroom. ¡°Oh, there are no huts in the woods?¡± Velvet flipped the pages, searching. She had mocked Gertine¡¯s idea at first, but, after a bit of thinking, she wanted privacy. She was almost ready to say Andras¡¯ name in the dream again, and the furthest away from other mages she was at that moment, the better. Murrs looked troubled for a moment. ¡°We had some in the past, but the lack of maintenance has made them unusable-¡± ¡°Really? Tristan¡¯s should be fine at least.¡± A voice sounded next to Velvet, and she turned, seeing Ceres taking the book from Murrs¡¯ hands. ¡°Is the Selection over so soon?¡± ¡°Nah, but you can abscond once you pick an apprentice.¡± He flipped the pages a bit, turning and shaking the book, to Murrs¡¯ disgust. ¡°Where¡¯s the huts? I remember there were five of them.¡± ¡°Three are completely broken and unusable.¡± ¡°Tristan¡¯s?¡± ¡°Is¡­ usable.¡± ¡°Great.¡± Ceres turned to Velvet. ¡°We had some mad parties there when we were younger, it would be a shame if it just fell down.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the price?¡± Murrs was going to say something, but once again she wasn¡¯t fast enough, losing to Ceres. ¡°Tristan paid like ten auris per month.¡± Velvet then looked at Murrs, waiting for her words. ¡°Yes¡­ But any repairs cost extra!¡± ¡°Even if I make them?¡± ¡°Those not, of course.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll pick that one. And I¡¯ll pay ten months in advance.¡± She put 80 auris on the counter, taking advantage of the discount. Murrs then gave her some sheets of paper, similar to Gertine¡¯s. On one there was a map, marking the location of the hut. She also saw the line marking the magical barrier that separated the ¡®safe¡¯ part of the forest from the Mergifari¡¯s Unnamed Forest. No wonder it was that cheap. Even so, that barrier had held for hundreds of years, so she wasn¡¯t worried. Chapter 62. Hut After signing the papers, not before fully reading them, and giving half of them back to Murrs, Velvet grabbed the hut keys. ¡°Why is one made of glass?¡± Of the three keys she got, one was transparent, with several symbols across it. She turned to ask Ceres, but saw that he had gone to talk to some other mage. ¡°That one is for you to give to someone, and be able to call it back if you fight with them.¡± Murrs said, as if the answer was obvious. ¡°Why give someone else a key? I can just bring them with me if I want to let them in.¡± ¡°You can just keep the key for yourself¡­¡± Murrs¡¯ customer smile twitched. ¡°It¡¯s your choice in the end.¡± She looked at Nereus. ¡°Do you want to see the options, mister?¡± ¡°No.¡± Velvet felt Gertine lighty poking her, so she turned to look at her, receiving a slight ¡®look back¡¯ gesture with the eyes. So she turned her whole head, hearing a tsk from her. I meant peek! Not ¡®Turn your whole head like an Udulluay¡¯! Gertine thought. Oh, Igern and company are done. She saw two more people. One was the girl with blue hair that she remembered seeing on the airship with the pet snake. And the other was¡­ ¡°Creftalia! Oh, hello!¡± Velvet waved her hand happily, to the poor girl''s dismay. Creftalia looked at Velvet for a few seconds, trying to remember who she was¡­ And once she did, she wanted to go back to the sweet ignorance. It was Velvet, the mage that blew her up after sweetalking her! She almost turned around and fled, but ended up just getting behind Igern. She thought a bit, and changed her position to be behind Dianthus. Thinking a bit more, she went behind the blue haired girl. All of that happened in a second. ¡°What did you do to her?¡± Gertine asked, also having seen that. ¡°I don¡¯t remember, I really don¡¯t know what¡¯s gotten into her.¡± Velvet joked, to which Gertine answered by scoffing. She knew Velvet was a knowledge mage, so the idea of her ¡®forgetting¡¯ something was stupid. Nereus looked at Creftalia, and then at Velvet. ¡°Go and ask her then.¡± ¡°Ne-re-us. Don¡¯t you have to go back with our dear Igern? Well, no need, he is coming here.¡± Velvet saw Igern walking towards them, well, towards the counter, actually. Murrs cleared her throat. ¡°Good morning mister! Do you want to see the housing options?¡± ¡°No, we already have ours arranged. I just came to pick the keys and papers.¡± He pushed some signed paper on the counter towards Murrs, who first looked dejected, since no one wanted to see the damn book, but once she saw the paper, her face did a full turn back to cheerfulness. ¡°Five sets of keys for the Marine Spring Palace.¡± ¡°Eh? Palace?¡± Velvet asked. ¡°I didn¡¯t see any palace from outside¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s inside a pocket dimension.¡± Dianthus explained. He had gotten closer while Igern waited, probably wanting to be nosy. ¡°Indeed!¡± Murrs added. ¡°We also have castles, manors, islands, and houses.¡± Velvet wanted to ask for the price of those, but Igern cleared his throat, annoyed that Dianthus didn¡¯t stay put, so Murrs started hurrying up, putting the keys and papers on top of the counter in record time. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Igern took four sets, leaving one. He gave one set to Nereus. ¡°You need to sign here, here and here.¡± When Nereus just stared blankly at him, he corrected himself. ¡°Put ink on your finger and press it here, here and here. You¡¯ve done this before.¡± He waited until he was sure Nereus understood, and went back to the girls. ¡°Don¡¯t I get an explanation? Man, he left me like this.¡± Dianthus said. He wanted Velvet to hear him and make conversation, since he was still interested in poking Lothrigern, but the girl had gone to Nereus, snooping over the pages. ¡°It has a dance hall¡­¡± She was looking at the palace blueprints, amazed. ¡°What does this say?¡± Nereus asked. ¡°Dining hall.¡± ¡°Where is the kitchen?¡± ¡°This one here, next to the dining hall.¡± ¡°Where is my room?¡± ¡°Um, lemme see¡­¡± She flipped the pages. ¡°Here. Second floor, third one to the right.¡± ¡°Why do I have a glass key?¡± ¡°Hey c''mon, that one was already asked by me! To give someone else access!¡± She waited for Nereus to ask ¡®For what?¡¯, but he just said ¡°Ah.¡± Why is that one of the things you understand clearly¡­?! Even Igern just turned! ¡°I¡¯m going to unpack my things.¡± Gertine said, waving goodbye to them. This time there was no concealment spell to mess with things, so they could see each other whenever. ¡°Oh, I should go do that too¡­¡± Velvet said. To tell the truth, she wanted to fall asleep and trigger some corruption, but that could wait until night. ¡°Do you want to know anything else?¡± She asked Nereus, who had finished pressing his finger on the pages. ¡°I don¡¯t think so.¡± He said. ¡°Well¡­ Do I give these pages to Igern or to the cat?¡± ¡°Her name is Murrs.¡± ¡°My name is Murrs!¡± They spoke at the same time, but Murrs¡¯ voice was higher. ¡°And you can give me the signed papers!¡± Since Nereus was with his team now, Velvet looked to where Ceres was. He was still talking. Well, I can talk to him tomorrow. ¡°Creftalia!¡± She suddenly said, making the poor girl in question jump. ¡°Velvet! W-what do you want?¡± ¡°Nothing, just saying goodbye. And see you soon!¡± Velvet laughed, and Creftalia almost whimpered at those last words. But Velvet was leaving, and that¡¯s all she wante- Velvet suddenly turned around. ¡°Oh, another thing!¡± Why?! You were just at the door! Both of them looked at each other in silence for a few seconds, and Creftalia was starting to feel anxious. ¡°W-what is it?¡± She surrendered, asking. ¡°I forgot. Well, bye!¡± Velvet left, leaving her with the mouth gaping. You did that on purpose! Creftalia screamed in her mind. ¡­ Seven hundred meters deep into the forest, three hundred away from the closest point to the barrier. ¡°And I was thinking I didn¡¯t need to walk any more today.¡± Velvet complained once she arrived at the hut. It was cylindrical, more wide than tall, with three floors. The lower one had the kitchen, and some free space. Maybe in the past it was a lounge, but now it was empty, except for a table and some broken chairs. The second floor had the bathroom. Some metal pipes came from there, going to the well, and they worked fine. The cauldron was broken, so she only had cold water to bathe. Unless she used magic, of course. And magic was cheaper than buying coal. Apart from the bathroom, the hut once again had more free, empty space. Maybe for an alchemy room or something. The third floor was not a floor, it was an attic. Smaller than the rest of the floors, and of lower ceiling, she had to climb some extendible metal stairs to arrive. A bedroom was there. The bed looked dusty, and probably filled with bugs. A broken lamp was next to the bed, and a wardrobe that had miraculously survived was next to the wall. Being positive, the bedroom had a window with an amazing view. Getting ready to spend the day on cleaning and repairs, Velvet cracked her knuckles. ¡°Hyde, if you want some bugs to snack on, better get them before I do.¡± Chapter 63. Moth to a flame Several hours of cleaning later, Velvet stopped for a snack. Since there was no food in the hut, and she didn¡¯t want to travel all the way back, she ended up looking around the forest. There were some trees and plants she didn¡¯t know anything about, especially mushrooms, but she found a pine tree with pinecones, with its seeds up for grabs. Together with a hare she hunted with magic, and a few eggs she stole from a nest, she had enough for eating. But she wanted to see the barrier, just out of curiosity. It wasn¡¯t that far away. After walking for a few minutes, she felt the barrier before seeing it, her hair starting to float, and the ambience getting progressively ¡®thicker¡¯. She was ten meters away from the barrier, but she felt too threatened to get closer, not to say touching it. She was confident that touching the barrier would disintegrate her body, so she satisfied her curiosity from a distance. The barrier was translucent, reflecting a myriad of colors with the light, which moved slowly as if it consisted of a liquid. Velvet looked behind the barrier, towards the Unnamed Forest. The trees there were bigger, taller and thicker, making clear as water the difference between the forests. Something moved behind them. Velvet didn¡¯t notice it at first, thinking it was the wind, until a whole tree moved. Not a tree, a leg. Looking up, an immense figure waited. It was covered in plants that hung as if it was a weeping willow, and even its horns were covered in branches. It, like Velvet, looked up, taking a whole branch from a tree, tearing it off and starting to munch on it. It was a deer, an enormous deer; Velvet barely reached a third of its hooves. It looked at her while it ate, but, seeing she was harmless and bug sized, it paid no attention, eventually walking away. Velvet noticed its horns had remains of blood and skin, and the deer lacked an eye, making it clear that it was not on top of the food chain. She left after that, going back to the hut. She also picked some strange mushrooms on the way back. Not for eating, but for alchemy. Well, she would love to feed them to Ethra or Alrai, but the predictable lack of cooperation from their part put her off. Oh, I should totally call him Count Graham the next time he bothers me, I¡¯m sure that¡¯ll piss him off. Or maybe he enjoys it, mages are kinda messed up in the head. Once back, she played with her bracelet, watching the Fire Salamander¡¯s container. Since the animal was pretty chill, Velvet had taken some liberties with its territory, planting stuff. The stuff in question being Sinoe¡¯s Baslard, who was buried in a corner. Fumbling with the formation, she pulled the knife out, cleaning it. She had previously ¡®threatened¡¯ it by using it to clean fish. Well, now its function was butchering a hare. And it worked amazingly, it even made clean bone cuts, not a single shard on sight. ¡°See? Isn¡¯t this better than murder? You were supposed to be a chef utensil all this time, not a murder weapon.¡± After the butchering, she pulled out the pine cone seeds, and cleaned an old bowl to boil eggs. There was also some firewood from the previous tenant, so she turned on the chimney. The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. She had been eating well these past few weeks, but she was more than used to eating unseasoned food. While the food was cooking, she dismantled one of the broken chairs to fix another, tossing the unsalvageable pieces to the fireplace. Every now and then, she turned the hare skewers a bit, to make them evenly cooked. Like that, between repairs, reforms and undust, the day passed. She had fully sanitized the bed, and Hyde was probably well fed for several days after this. She had also taken a shower, even when she was probably a few hours away from another. But, after spending the whole day moving, hygiene was a must! She didn¡¯t want to go to sleep being stinky! Velvet also made sure to get stuff ready. Paper sheets, empty bottles, a glass of water, and a filled bathtub. She went to sleep. Lothrigern hadn¡¯t tried anything these few days, but she still was wary, telling Hyde that, if she didn¡¯t wake up in fifteen minutes after falling asleep, he needed to use the charms. She didn¡¯t know if the charms would work under Lothrigern influence, but it didn¡¯t hurt to try. Getting on the bed, she closed her eyes. ¡­ The dream was dark and silent, like always, with the chained man deep down. Velvet looked around, trying to see if she felt Lothrigern¡¯s presence. Nothing. ¡°Hm. Surely you¡¯re not watching?¡± She asked the void. ¡°Because I¡¯m about to scream the Father of Hell¡¯s name if you have nothing to say!¡± Nothing again. A part of her was disappointed; Lothrigern¡¯s other-worldly, supernatural beauty was truly a sight to behold. Like a moth to a flame, Velvet was attracted to it, even when it would kill her. Maybe that¡¯s why so many mages had perished calling for Him. ¡°Did you perhaps find another mage to visit? My heart is broken!¡± Her heart was certainly not broken, she was just doing it to be dramatic. If she was truly heartbroken, she would just call for Him, which she absolutely didn¡¯t dare to do. What she was doing by acting like that was losing time. She wanted to hit the ten minute mark of sleep before trying anything, that way, she wouldn¡¯t need to wait much time in case things went awry. Looking to both sides, she opened her mouth. ¡°And-¡± A gloveless hand reached from behind her, pushing her jaw closed softly. Velvet made a ¡®Fufu¡¯ noise, both terrified and happy. ¡°Even the Eternal Griever would stop his mourning and look down if you keep calling for him in such depth.¡± Lothrigern¡¯s hands are so pretty¡­ They look and feel like butterfly wings. Velvet felt herself becoming a bit ticklish, but stopped once Lothrigern pressed his nails, probably so that she paid attention. ¡°What name can I use?¡± She didn¡¯t know who the Eternal Griever was, but, since she was going to call Andras, it probably referred to Him. He didn¡¯t answer, just kept silent. Velvet turned her head to look at Him, but all she saw was darkness. ¡°Mine.¡± Aren¡¯t you already here? Your name didn¡¯t do- Velvet then realized that whoever was touching her face wasn¡¯t Lothrigern. She jumped back, trying to get away. ¡°My name. Say my name.¡± Hands started appearing, grabbing and dragging Velvet down. She fought against them, kicking and turning her body to escape their grasp. The hand¡¯s claws reacted by tearing and ripping her skin, becoming tainted red. It¡¯s a dream, my body is fine. She repeated in her mind, even when the tearing sensation and pain felt terribly real. ¡°What name?!¡± She asked, crawling back, hoping for that question to give her a few seconds to breathe. ¡°My name, my name. I don¡¯t know my name. They took it from me. They took my name.¡± The hands gripped at Velvet legs, almost desperately, almost begging. ¡°They took everything from me.¡± ¡°Are you the Chained Man?¡± She asked, clenching her teeth under the pain. At least, the hands had stopped trying to ¡®bury¡¯ her. ¡°The chained, the chained, no, no.¡± Her dreamland twisted and turned, the darkness spinning and moving. A nauseating feeling covered Velvet. ¡°I am the chains.¡± The ¡®dream¡¯ opened its ¡®eyes¡¯, and ¡®looked¡¯ at her. Chapter 64. For science Velvet opened her eyes, finding herself on her bed. She touched her body, but didn¡¯t find anything strange. Her skin was unharmed, and there was no suggestion of her losing control. Her miasma levels also were the same as before. ¡°Did you wake me up?¡± She asked Hyde. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Name.¡± ¡°Velvet. What happened?¡± He noticed that she looked sane. ¡°Nn¡­ Something,¡± She kept on looking at her skin, when a crawling sensation started to appear, as if maggots were squirming inside. ¡°No, someone interrupted me.¡± ¡°Hehe.¡± She laughed softly, taking a deep breath when the sensation kept increasing. ¡°Can jails have a heart and soul?¡± Picking Sinoe¡¯s Baslard, she first pinched one of the squirming things on her thigh, and then made a slight cut. Pressing it as if it was a pimple, something came out. An eye, together with a black, dense liquid slid down Velvet¡¯s leg. She put it inside a bottle, shaking it. The eye was ¡®dead¡¯, no longer moving, unlike the other ones that remained still under Velvet¡¯s skin, making slight bulges. She first finished cleaning that one cut, leaving the stitching to Hyde, who was also crawling over her skin, filled with curiosity. ¡°I have several conclusions from this, and questions.¡± Velvet said, not stopping the wormeye removal, but thinking about other things helped to cope. ¡°First, the place where the Chained Man is sealed is alive, and that is both a good and a bad thing.¡± ¡°Good for whoever imprisoned him there. A prison with a mind of its own can make decisions if things go awry, and also endure forever, but.¡± ¡°At what point does the prison also become a prisoner? That thing has lost its mind, probably even more than the one it''s supposed to keep sealed.¡± ¡°It also reacted without me doing anything to trigger it. I talked to it every day since I started dreaming, and it never reacted before. That may be a signal that it''s reaching its limit.¡± Velvet started putting all her conjectures in order, together with all her previous information. ¡°What happens once it crosses its limit? Could something like the Casrey incident happen?¡± ¡°If that was the reason behind the Casrey incident, maybe the culprit was not the Chained man, but his own prison losing its mind. Of course, to confirm that, I should search for similar incidents, after all, even causing the Casrey incident didn¡¯t let the Chained man escape, nor break down the prison.¡± ¡°Wait.¡± Hyde interrupted her conjectures. ¡°It might not fully break, but you ended up inside. And we know Lothrigern can enter and leave.¡± ¡°There¡¯s a crack? I never found anything like that, it all looks the same.¡± She thought for a bit. ¡°But I¡¯m not from a dream related Paradigm, so, even if it was, maybe I just don¡¯t have the skills to find out.¡± ¡°Or, the crack is fixed already, and Lothrigern just has His own ways to enter. Anyway, that¡¯s not important. The important thing is what happens if the prison loses control? A repeat of Casrey? And what will happen to me?¡± She had some connection to it, after all. The eyes she was pushing out from her skin proved it. ¡°You hurried so much to obtain magic because you felt an urge to find him, right?¡± Hyde said. ¡°Yes, I had the feeling that I was running out of time, that something was coming.¡± This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. ¡°Maybe that caused the rush. Either you get a way to fix, find, calm, or cut your connection to the dream, or you may die.¡± ¡°I may die.¡± She repeated the last words, emotionless. ¡°Maybe not, but, until we know what really will happen, it''s better to plan for the worst option.¡± ¡°Those things,¡± Hyde referred to the eyes that Velvet kept piling on the bottles. ¡°Are remains from something, something that is using you as an outlet.¡± ¡°Like an Esca. So it¡¯s something similar to the miasma.¡± ¡°Yes, I can feel some similarities, especially from that black liquid.¡± ¡°But it doesn¡¯t give me powers.¡± Hyde seemed to think about that. ¡°Are you sure you don¡¯t feel anything?¡± ¡°Apart from the eyes crawling under my skin? No, the most I¡¯ve obtained from the dream has been the chaining charm. Oh, and the materials from almost losing control.¡± ¡°Sure?¡± ¡°I am a knowledge mage, of course I am sure.¡± ¡°What if we put the sigils from the chaining charm on your skin?¡± ¡°Hyde, your demon tendencies are showing. I cannot regrow a lost limb if it happens to become a chain.¡± ¡°What if you bought a pet to try it on?¡± ¡°E-even if it worked on an animal, I still wouldn¡¯t try it on me! Not unless I had no choice! Also, imagine if it worked, and the animal took revenge. I don¡¯t want to be clapped by a rabbit.¡± Hyde didn¡¯t give up. ¡°What if we tried it on that Chosen One?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Chosen Ones can regenerate, even lost limbs. We can get him, and try to see what happens.¡± ¡°Hyde. I am not doing that.¡± ¡°He looks heroic, gullible and confident, the perfect combination to abuse! You can act as a damsel in distress, lead him on¡­¡± ¡°And become Arhontissa¡¯s enemy. Great idea, I¡¯m off to just not do that. Also, what do you mean ¡®act like a damsel in distress?¡¯ Do I trip and fall in front of him, crying ¡®Oh, if I don''t manage to find someone to use this sigil on, I will die! Sniff, sniff¡¯.¡± ¡°I was actually suggesting to give him a concussion, and put the sigil on his skin while he¡¯s out.¡± ¡°You¡¯re so romantic Hyde.¡± ¡°I am a spider.¡± ¡°... Do female demonic spiders also eat their mates after¡­?¡± ¡°Sometimes. It depends.¡± ¡°Depends on what?¡± ¡°Skill.¡± ¡°Skill on¡­? Oh. Forget I asked.¡± ¡°So, about abducting the Chosen One?¡± ¡°No!¡± ¡°Not even for science?¡± ¡°What even makes you think I can take him? I¡¯m not a combat mage.¡± ¡°Wait until the opportunity presents itself, like an ambush predator. He is a Chosen One, that means he is a magnet for problems! Let someone beat him up first, and then reap the benefits!¡± ¡°What did Dianthus even do to you¡­¡± Velvet sighed. It almost felt that Hyde had a personal grudge against him, even when she knew it was just the search for knowledge that made Hyde almost manic. ¡°He is just the best target. Also, we have fate on our side. If we think too hard about hunting the Chosen One, fate will make the opportunity present itself.¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t the Chosen One always prevail? Are you setting me up to get beaten up like a third rate villain?¡± ¡°We are not going to kill him. I¡¯m sure he¡¯s even used to similar things by now.¡± ¡°That doesn¡¯t exactly fill me with confidence. But, fine. If fate gives me an opportunity to take him on, I¡¯ll do- A strong explosion shook the hut. It had come from the barrier, but from inside. ¡°I¡¯m sure that¡¯s him.¡± Hyde said, in a way too smug for a spider. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°... But I¡¯m in bed and it¡¯s late¡­ and I just finished pulling out eyes from inside me.¡± ¡°Velvet. We are from the Knowledge Paradigm. We chase information. Aren¡¯t you in a rush to find the truth? Let¡¯s go get him.¡± She slowly got up with a groan, starting to dress herself. ¡°If he isn¡¯t almost dead or fainted, I will run away.¡± Chapter 65. Seven years Velvet strolled through the midnight forest, taking her sweet time. She wasn¡¯t really in a hurry, after all. ¡°So, Hyde. What exactly means being a Chosen One?¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t you ask before?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t care about it before.¡± She answered nonchalantly. It was the truth, Dianthus existence was of no concern to her until now. ¡°Chosen One sounds too nice for what it is. In Hell we simply call them ¡®god¡¯s puppets¡¯.¡± ¡°Because it doesn¡¯t matter what they do, since they will end up following what the ¡®prophecy¡¯ entails?¡± She had an idea of where the thing was going. ¡°Yes, in fact, Alrai Siberetti did more or less explain it. If a gambler or an oracle prophesied that, for example, that you will die by drowning in the sea, you can just refuse to get close to the sea, not dying from that, but a chosen doesn¡¯t have that option. They lack what we consider ¡®free will¡¯.¡± ¡°Even if their bodies get burnt to ashes or eaten by fish, they will always come back, until the prophecy is fulfilled.¡± ¡°Shoot them a hundred times, tear their bodies to pieces, feed them to the bugs, it does not matter. Until their ¡®tale¡¯ is over, they will not rest.¡± Velvet interrupted. ¡°Isn¡¯t that pitiful? Sounds like a tragedy.¡± ¡°Not for them, they are made that way. You wouldn¡¯t complain that a hammer¡¯s fate is poking nails, will you?¡± ¡°A hammer isn¡¯t alive¡­ Dianthus is a human.¡± ¡°Is a puppet made of human flesh a human? ¡°Lemme do another one.¡± Velvet said. ¡°If it looks like a duck, talks like a duck and acts like a duck, it''s a duck.¡± ¡°If you want to see it that way.¡± ¡°Well, I do want to see it that way!¡± They got closer to where the explosion sounded, and Velvet looked around to see where Dianthus was. She had decided to not use Dianthus as a lab rat, and Hyde could bitch as much as he wanted about it. But she still had some curiosity of what the hell was the guy doing in the forest in the middle of the night. The dust was settling down, and a shape was taking form. Hm? That¡¯s not Dian¡­ Well, maybe he is into midnight crossdressing in the woods¡­ No, the size is not the same, that¡¯s someone else. At least the shape was humanoid, so being an escaped monster or demon was out of the possibilities. The person shook off the dust on her dress, a black and blue long dress, and turned to Velvet. ¡°Oh, did I wake you up? Sorry.¡± She had long fog colored wavy hair that cascaded down her back, and¡­ ¡°Do I know you?¡± Velvet asked. Her face¡­ she was sure they knew each other, but from long ago, even before she obtained her magic. The woman turned to look at her. She was holding some strange box. ¡°Well¡­ I do not recognize you.¡± Velvet squinted, forcing her memory. Recalling things that happened before she became a knowledge mage were difficult, but she just knew that face. The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°You must be confused.¡± The woman said, with intention to leave. ¡°No I¡¯m not.¡± She stopped her, moving in front of her path. ¡°Nebura. That¡¯s your name, right?¡± A strange smile appeared on Velvet''s face. ¡°Nebura Dorna, Madam Dorna¡¯s niece.¡± She revealed the woman¡¯s identity. ¡°Your grandma thought you were dead.¡± ¡°I think you¡¯re mistaking me for someone else.¡± Nebura said, changing her course of direction to leave, but Velvet did the same, stopping her again, not changing her strange smile. ¡°I can assure you I¡¯m making no mistake. Really, how long ago was it? Six¡­ no, seven. Seven years. And not even once did you send a letter. Or proof of life.¡± Velvet tilted her head. ¡°Oh, you still don¡¯t know how to summon a fae? I can teach you-¡± ¡°Shut up.¡± Velvet shut up, but she didn¡¯t shut up because she wanted to, but because Nebura was from the Pride Paradigm, and she gave an order. That information just made her smile grow even more. ¡°I no longer have any relation to Casrey, or Charlampa.¡± Nebura said, her voice having a slight tinge of anger. ¡°And once you learn a bit, you¡¯ll understand that¡¯s the best choice.¡± Velvet raised her hand, like children did during class to get the speaking turn, and waved it. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Did you find anything about Casrey¡¯s incident? That¡¯s why you came here seven years ago, right?¡± Velvet looked up, and then rolled her eyes to the side. ¡°Unless you also forgot about that, since you¡¯ve been sooo busy exploding barriers all these years.¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t-¡± She clicked her tongue ¡°I don¡¯t need to explain what I was doing to you.¡± She hugged the strange box she was carrying, which probably was responsible for the bang. ¡°The incident¡­ There¡¯s nothing to find, accidents happen all the time. You can cry because a volcano eruption wiped a village, but nature won¡¯t cry with you.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t remember the man on top of the mountain?¡± She asked, since well, Nebura¡¯s parents also were some of the melted people. ¡°No.¡± Velvet looked at her face, trying to see if any microexpression exposed that she was lying. But no, at least not at surface level. ¡°You know, Madam Dorna hates mages since you disappeared. She believes you got killed, or something worse.¡± ¡°Velvet.¡± ¡°So you remember me.¡± ¡°Who wouldn¡¯t? You were an awful child.¡± Nebura left Casrey 7 years ago. Three after the incident, when Velvet was eleven, and she was nineteen. ¡°I have gotten better with the years. Madam Dorna even gave me the clothes she was saving for you.¡± She twirled around, showing off. ¡°See?¡± She looked, shaking her head. ¡°She wouldn¡¯t get me a hat.¡± ¡°The hat wasn¡¯t for you.¡± ¡°Good. If we are done now, I would like to leave.¡± Nebura tried to change her path, but Velvet cut her off again, which was starting to annoy her. ¡°She is getting worse, you know? She might not live for three more months.¡± Nebura looked straight to her. ¡°Honestly? I thought she would be dead by now. Get out of my way.¡± This time Velvet didn¡¯t obey, even when it was an order, which made Nebura grit her teeth. Having dealt with Cornelius and Ethra, Velvet already knew tricks to avoid orders. Nebura just caught her by surprise at first. ¡°So, if you aren''t a Charlampian now, what are you?¡± ¡°Arhontissian. Which you will become too, if you desire to improve.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± "Yes.¡± Nebura didn¡¯t smile, not wanting to imitate Velvet. ¡°You still haven''t noticed, not that you would, never having been to a place regented for a deity. But you will eventually notice the difference between mages from a godless land and those with a god. How many times have you purified your body from miasma? I remember it was once a month, right?¡± Velvet didn''t answer, just smiled at her. ¡°I do it twice. A year. And Velvet? When did you open the gate to the Primeval sea? A year ago? Two years?" "The ideal age for Charlampian mages to open the Esca it''s between sixteen to thirty, depending on the maturity, since the chance of going mad or dying it''s so high. Do you know which is the ideal age for Arhontissians?" Nebura took a step closer to her. "Twelve." Chapter 66. Scriptures The Tales of Creation, the scriptures where the process for the first human¡¯s birth was depicted. Thousands of years ago, the First Maquia ended, with the six triumphant gods settling their lands as they saw fit. Paraiso, the hollow marsh. Idhir, the melting mountains. Mirel, the frosted meadow. Dodon, the mist islands. Ihilia, the scorching sands. Arhontissa, the highland forest. Of course, a god isn''t really a god if they have no believers. So they made humans. Paraiso made humans from clay. Idhir made humans from iron. Mirel made humans from ice. Dodon made humans from seafoam. Ihilia made humans from sand. Arhontissa made humans from wood. The resulting humans were different, and, even when their original characteristics had blurred with the passage of time, they were known. Paraiso¡¯s humans had orange eyes and blue hair. Idir¡¯s humans had purple eyes and brown hair. Mirel¡¯s humans had black eyes and white hair. Dodon¡¯s humans had blue eyes and gray hair. Ihilia¡¯s humans had silver eyes and red hair. Arhontissa¡¯s humans had green eyes and black hair. One could more or less conclude how strong a god¡¯s influence is on its land based on the number of humans with both characteristics. For example, Charlampia barely had humans with both characteristics: Velvet eyes were blue, yes, but her hair was orange, not gray. Madam Dorna and Nebura had gray hair, but their eyes weren¡¯t blue. Only Viroa had both. For Arhontissia mages, on the contrary, Velvet had seen several with black hair and green eyes. From the Queen, to Igern, to Creftalia. Nereus also had black hair. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. And what about Permafrost, one may ask? There is no life on Permafrost. There has never been. Shaking those thoughts from her mind, Velvet returned Nebura¡¯s gaze. ¡°Is that all you want? You have already opened your Esca, are you maybe thinking about your future generation?¡± Honestly, with all Velvet had going on, purification almost didn¡¯t bother her. She would choose miasma purification over being under a mountain of dismembered corpses every day. Nebura scoffed. ¡°Not at all. But I¡¯ll let you figure out the real reason. Now, stop me again and we will be having a problem.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t.¡± Velvet didn¡¯t move aside, making Nebura do the effort on changing her path again. ¡°You gave me all you could offer anyway.¡± Nebura stopped at that, wanting to retort to Velvet¡¯s words. She was just too good at pressing people¡¯s buttons! Even as a child! But she refused to compel and give Velvet the satisfaction, walking away. Velvet looked at her go, smiling all the time. Once Nebura was out of sight, and very far away, she chuckled a bit to herself. She didn¡¯t say anything, just took a quick peek at whatever Nebura had exploded before going back to the cabin. Slowly taking off her clothes again to go back to sleep, since it was barely past midnight, she hummed softly a song. ¡°Velvet?¡± Hyde said, worried since she didn¡¯t talk during the whole trip back. ¡°Hm?¡± ¡°Are you okay?¡± Velvet laughed.¡±That fate thing you spoke about didn¡¯t work, like, at all! Dianthus was nowhere to be seen.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not referring to that.¡± ¡°Oh, yeah, of course. I am more worried about falling asleep. I might just trigger Lothrigern to feel something.¡± ¡°... If your mental state is shaken, not even using Andras¡¯ name is safe.¡± ¡°I know, I know.¡± Velvet waved her hands, throwing herself face down on the bed. ¡°Velvet.¡± ¡°Hyde, I¡¯m not stupid nor suicidal, I won¡¯t try anything dangerous.¡± Covering her body with the blankets, and closing her eyes, she fell asleep. ¡­ Opening her eyes a few minutes later, she found herself in the darkness of her dream. This time she didn¡¯t speak, planning to just wait it out. She had told the truth to Hyde. She had no intention of triggering Andras with her current mental status, and the same was for the other things. Losing her mind to corruption wasn¡¯t on her list of interests, after all. Even so, she took her time to look around, trying to see if anything was different, but, on a surface look, everything except the chained man was pitch dark. Hm, his hair is red. Could he be related to Ihilia? Velvet thought, since she didn¡¯t want to speak, in fear of causing something. Ihilia was the first true deity to fall, losing to Idir and starting the Second Maquia, while Dodon was the second, falling under Arhontissa, starting the Third Maquia. Why start, and not end? Easy, that was because, until only one deity remained, war was never truly over. Luckily for humans, gods were eternal, and possessed all the time possible, meaning that their moves took a long time to start, and, until the conflict escalated past the point of no return, humans barely felt the war. Currently, they were in the year 375 of the Third Maquia. Velvet barely knew anything about Ihilia, only that she existed. Maybe Idhir¡¯s archives held more information, since they were the one that defeated her, taking the war spoils. Will calling Ihilia¡¯s name have any effect? Possessed by a dangerous train of thought, Velvet licked her lips. Since she didn¡¯t know anything about that goddess, she wasn¡¯t sure if she had any relation with Andras or Lothrigern, but she was sure that those two never appeared in any non-mage scriptures. I should see if I can access the Mergifari¡¯s library¡­ Hm? Something slithered behind the darkness, making her feel the sensation of being watched. ¡°Lothrigern?¡± She asked first. Velvet didn¡¯t know what she preferred, really. The hands that ripped her flesh until feeling bone, or the beautiful but death-flag carrier. Nebura got me in a mood, at least Lothrigern is nice to look at¡­ for a few seconds, at least. Maybe less. She felt fingers pressing on her lower neck, which slowly got dragged towards her chin, lifting it, apparently checking something. Unable to see who was the one doing that, and feeling her face get turned slowly side to side, Velvet spoke again. ¡°What are you searching for?¡± ¡°A coward¡¯s mark.¡± Lothrigern¡¯s voice sounded. ¡°Fate corruptor.¡± He seemed to find whatever He was searching for, sliding a finger on Velvet¡¯s cheek, as if he was trying to scrub a dirty spot. Or scratch a cat¡¯s face. ¡°Hm.¡± Happy for receiving a non threatening, no harmful answer, she pressed. ¡°Fate corruptor?¡± She heard Lothrigern sigh, before feeling again being watched. ¡°Find out on your own. And get stronger, you don¡¯t have time.¡± It¡¯s not my fault being in a support Paradigm¡­ ¡°I¡¯ll do that.¡± Did that mean that Lothrigern wanted something from her or the dream? Was she safe from Him? Just as she thought of that, she felt Lothrigern¡¯s fingers leaving her face, and His presence slowly disappearing. Could it be a trap? She wasn¡¯t sure. Chapter 67. Cake The rest of her dream passed kind of fast, actually. It almost felt that Lothrigern did something before leaving, since Velvet woke up extremely well rested. She pushed Nebura¡¯s thoughts away from her mind, planning on writing a letter to Madam Dorna, since the concealment spell was no longer in effect, and she could summon a fairy. Velvet had doubts about telling her that her niece was alive and well. Pros of telling her: Madam Dorna would get closure about Nebura''s disappearance. Cons of telling her: Nebura had cut contact all these years on purpose, and she didn¡¯t plan on going back on her decision. That could affect Madam Dorna¡¯s already delicate health. Pros of not telling her: What you don¡¯t know can¡¯t hurt you. Seven years were a long time. Not enough to forget someone, but the wound no longer bled. Cons of not telling her: Velvet would feel bad if Madam Dorna died without knowing the truth. She deserved to know. ¡°Hyde¡­ what do you suggest?¡± She asked for a secondary opinion. ¡°Tell her. You will regret it if you don¡¯t.¡± He was right. Velvet stopped stalling, picking up a blank sheet of paper and a special pen to make the small imprints so that Madam Dorna could read it. It took her a bit of thinking to get a letter that she found satisfactory, but she managed, closing the letter and starting to set the fae altar with the tiny bells. Like the first time, she started by making them jingle for a bit, and then started chanting. ¡°From the center¡­ to between.¡± ¡°From the earthbound¡­to the fae that travels unbounded.¡± ¡°I¡¯m Velvet Consestella Dobastro, and I call for a helpful and pleasant, non Lothrigern faerie that can safely deliver this envelope to Madam Dorna, in Casrey¡¯s orphanage, returning it to me if they can¡¯t find her.¡± The bells kept on making that pleasant jingle. After a few seconds, the space in the middle of the circle twisted, letting someone out. Unlike the bear from the previous time, a beautiful woman came out. Her hair was translucent like aquamarine colored water, her skin was extremely pale, but not enough that it marked her veins. She was dressed in an almost transparent dress that didn¡¯t leave anything for the imagination. Velvet felt herself blush, until the woman moved her body a bit, the illusion breaking for an instant. Her gorgeous hair became snakes that coiled around the air, her pale, soft skin adopted a drowned corpse blue taint, and her beautiful face became rotten, having been eaten by fishes, part of it showing the bones underneath. After that instant, she became beautiful again, giving an enticing smile to Velvet. ¡°Hello, do you need help?¡± She asked, and Velvet almost jumped. She wanted her silent bear back! This one felt too dangerous! ¡°I need to deliver this envelope safely.¡± She said. The fairy extended her soft, manicured hand towards her, showing her palm. Velvet did the same, giving her the envelope. She wasn¡¯t feeling very confident, but suddenly, the fairy grabbed her hand, touching it before taking the envelope. ¡°Gloves are so uncomfortable¡­ Don¡¯t you prefer skin to skin contact?¡± Upon saying that, a strip of her dress fell down her arm, as if she was trying to seduce Velvet. You want to drown me, don¡¯t you miss?I should add non-murderous to the requisite list¡­ ¡°I like fashion. Dresses just don¡¯t look the same without gloves.¡± This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. ¡°Take your dress off too, then.¡± The fairy opened the envelope, reading the letter. ¡°It¡¯s cold. I would like to remain warm.¡± And dry. She finished the sentence in her mind. Velvet didn¡¯t mind the fairy being curious, and reading the letter, but every now and then, the illusion flickered, showing the cold, rotten meat underneath, and that made her more wary than necessary. Would she try to drown Madam Dorna? Now worried about someone else, she wanted to cancel the fae summoning, without offending the fae in question. Do I¡­ do I call for Lothrigern? Putting that option as a last resort, Velvet calmed down. Madam Dorna was blind, so she couldn¡¯t be seduced by looks alone! She hoped so, at least. ¡°Human writing keeps becoming stranger¡­¡± The fae said, putting the envelope back together and disappearing. Stopping the bells, Velvet looked at the aftermath of the summon. The wood tiles where the fae was standing had become rotten with humidity, and were starting to grow some moss. Fairy summon has to be done outside. She concluded, not worried for the tiles. That was what magic was for! Humidity eradication! Of course, she first needed a ¡®present¡¯ for the fairy. She looks carnivore, would some roasted hare be enough? Velvet still didn¡¯t have breakfast, so she went out for it. Crossing the door, she ended up face to face with Alrai. ¡°What are you doing in my hut?¡± She asked, activating her paper figurines. ¡°I was bored, so I just divined where you lived. Put those down, I promise to bring you no harm.¡± He said, taking a step back. ¡°So, what do you bring? If it is not a nice breakfast, get out.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be that aggressive, you¡¯re starting to behave like an old witch in the woods¡­ or an ogre.¡± Alrai raised a paper box, ¡®offering¡¯ it to Velvet. Velvet smiled at him. ¡°I do, right? Once you get in the hut mood, it¡¯s refreshing!¡± Not trusting Alrai one bit, she didn¡¯t take the box. ¡°Open it.¡± Alrai obeyed, opening, with more movements than necessary, all of them exaggerated to the extremes, the box. A sweet smelling strawberry cake was inside, unbothered from Alrai¡¯s movements. ¡°Ta-da!¡± He ¡®reoffered¡¯ the now open box to Velvet. ¡°Nuh-huh. You try it first. And I better see you swallow.¡± ¡°Oh, I just love when you talk to me like that! Any piece in preference, my dear Velbossy?¡± Pulling a knife out from his sleeves, suddenly and silently, Alrai played with it, pointing at the pieces, grinning when Velvet took a step back surprised. It was a really sharp knife, after all. ¡°That one.¡± She picked a piece, watching how Alrai cut it, stabbed it with the knife and ate it while staring straight at Velvet, a mocking grin on his lips. She laughed in response, picking the box and going back inside, followed by Alrai, who looked around. ¡°It¡¯s not bad.¡± Knocking on the walls, he seemed to be testing something. ¡°Old but sturdy.¡± Velvet put on the table, using some lust magic so that two broken chairs grew roots and could be used temporarily, making a table for three. ¡°Are you waiting for someone?¡± ¡°Gertine and Nereus will come later.¡± She lied, sitting down close to the wall, so that she could look at the inside. Alrai did the same, but he was looking at her and the wall. ¡°So, did Ethra leave you? Why are you crawling back to me?¡± She picked some cake, and damn, it was good. ¡°Not him, his mother.¡± Alrai made a ¡®tsch tsch tsch¡¯ noise, bothered. ¡°And her ¡®associates¡¯.¡± Is he referring to the Maneelys? Velvet didn¡¯t ask, not wanting Alrai to ask how she knew. ¡°And I¡¯m the only one you can go to? Damn, you¡¯re sooo unpopular.¡± ¡°You have no idea.¡± Velvet took a quick glance at the humidity spot that was growing in the middle of the floor, and she smiled enticingly at Alrai. ¡°Well, I know just what you need.¡± ¡°I¡¯m all ears.¡± Leaning back in her chair, Velvet caressed her neck slowly, letting her hair fall down her shoulders. ¡°Do you want to have sex, Alrai?¡± Alrai choked on the cake, shocked to the extremes. So shocked, he didn¡¯t notice someone approaching from behind. ¡°I-I, wait a second!¡± He coughed. ¡°I thought you were one of those that took it slow¡­¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Velvet raised an eyebrow, grinning from ear to ear. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to have sex with me.¡± A pale bluish hand grabbed the free chair, dragging it slowly before sitting down with a wet, sloshing sound. Alrai jumped from his seat, almost screaming, while Velvet cut a cake piece and ¡®gifted¡¯ it to the fairy. Chapter 68. Unfocused After the fairy took the cake piece and left, Alrai calmed down, glaring at Velvet, who had an absolute shit eating grin on her face. ¡°You¡¯re a terrible, horrible human.¡± He said. ¡°I bring you such a nice cake, and, in exchange, you try to hook me up with Asphyxia the Fae.¡± ¡°Oh, is that her name?¡± ¡°No, I just made it up.¡± Sitting back down, he scoffed at Velvet, whose grin had not disappeared. ¡°Just so you know, I¡¯ll get you back for this.¡± ¡°Please be gentle, I am a delicate maiden.¡± She mocked him, taking a bit of cake. Alrai rolled his eyes. ¡°Of course you are.¡± Planning to use Alrai¡¯s knowledge, she spoke. ¡°Righ, right, now that you¡¯re here, how much do you know about the Charlampian mages at the Mergifari?¡± She knew about the Graham ¡®faction¡¯, but, since they didn¡¯t control the Siberettis or the Doyles, Velvet supposed that there were more. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you ask how much I want to tell you about them?¡± ¡°So, how much?¡± ¡°Nothing.¡± ¡°Out of my house then.¡± She pointed at the door. ¡°Gah, jezz, wait! Okay, okay, I¡¯ll talk¡­ I brought you cake, stop pointing at the door!¡± Velvet laughed. ¡°Poor Alrai, it¡¯s sooo lonely¡­¡± ¡°Just until these idiots lower their guard¡­¡± He played with the knife, rolling and twisting it over his hand. ¡°I wanted to kill them, but I didn¡¯t get lucky¡­¡± ¡°Won¡¯t you get penalized for that?¡± ¡°Nah, your Selector is the one penalized. Use that info as you want.¡± If Alrai¡¯s Selector is his father, he surely would be praised for killing another mage. Velvet grimaced, becoming even more wary of him. ¡°You¡¯re sooo cute when you¡¯re scared, Velvet.¡± ¡°I know, your sister thought so too. And your father seems to also like me. Guess I¡¯m Siberetti Approved.¡± Nooo, it couldn¡¯t be Igern, it had to be the murderhobo clown family with luck messing powers who likes me! Velvet complained in her mind, even when she still smiled at Alrai. Alrai, who sighed in response, as if he was having a mortal inner turmoil. ¡°Ahh, I¡¯m really torn apart between two choices¡­ but, if push comes to shove, keep in mind I will choose Ethra.¡± ¡°Hell, I hope so. I only want you for that sweet, sweet information you¡¯re taking so long to give me.¡± ¡°And the cake.¡± ¡°And the cake.¡± She repeated. ¡°Okay, my sweet Strawbelvet.¡± Alrai frolicked on the chair, getting comfortable. ¡°There really aren''t a lot of big mage families on Charlampia. Most just dipped once Dodon kicked the bucket.¡± Hey now, Velvet thought, her smile tickering a bit, I know he is dead, but couldn¡¯t you use some bare respect for your previous god?! Pretending not to notice Velvet¡¯s look, he started. ¡°The Grahams, who kind of fumbled the bag hard thanks to you, losing their heir.¡± ¡°... It was your sister. Mostly.¡± Ignoring her remark, he continued. ¡°The Siberettis, the best family ever.¡± Alrai, your delusion is showing¡­ ¡°The Coaltheno, who I know are trying to dip it to Idir, so they¡¯re currently sucking some Idirian balls.¡± Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. Velvet guessed that meant that they were trying to select mages from Idirian origins, to form some connections. ¡°And Frore Tilleu.¡± ¡°Huh? Just one name? Is she a loner?¡± ¡°Eh, Sloth Paradigm¡­ They are not lonely per se, but spend more time sleeping than awake. Still, she is powerful enough to be her own family. Don¡¯t look at me like that, I don¡¯t make the rules.¡± ¡°The rule to be considered a big mage family is¡­?¡± ¡°Two Escas open.¡± Flinching, Velvet got a bit worried. Two Escas were no joke, she only had a quarter, and Adeline Graham had two at least! Cornelius did beat her totally, and only with half. She had gotten stronger since then, but, if there was a rematch, without Siberina, Velvet still had the biggest chance in losing. She also didn¡¯t know how strong Alrai was, actually. The Arena had a power penalty on the lower levels, which affected Igern and Vibora the most, but maybe Alrai was affected too. I spent so much time focused on the dream that I forgot about the real world¡­ I also provoked Ethra, Alrai, Nebura and Igern¡­ Am I becoming a paper tiger? Hahaha¡­ I should make my figurines paper tigers, haha¡­ Now I get why Lothrigern said ¡®Become stronger¡¯. Velvet shook her head suddenly, getting up. ¡°Oh, getting scared of the Graham¡¯s boss?¡± Alrai took Velvet¡¯s reaction as proof that she didn¡¯t know how to deal with Adeline once Irsen Kartal¡¯s protection wore off. If only that was her problem¡­ The Mergifari Archives should be opened, and, as a knowledge mage, knowledge was power! ¡­ Even if its use was rather mediocre in real combat. ¡°A bit, no use lying. But I should be working instead of wasting my time with bad influences¡­¡± ¡°Hey!¡± Patting off the dust from her dress, even when there were more crumbs than dust, Velvet picked out a few things and started pressuring Alrai to move, by pushing him repeatedly towards the door. Letting himself be pushed a few times, Alrai suddenly turned around and spooked Velvet, who jumped away, almost tripping over a chair in the process. ¡°Careful there, my sweet, delicate maiden. I don¡¯t want you to- Oh shit, is that my sister¡¯s knife? W-wait, put it down! I¡¯m leaving, I¡¯m leaving!¡± ¡°I wonder how much is the penalty for making a mage an eunuch. Well, that is for my Selector to worry about, isn¡¯t it, Alrai?¡± ¡°I am outside! And I¡¯m holding a branch! I know it cannot cut wood!¡± Alrai jumped aside, rolling on the ground to escape the paper figurine''s explosion. He was outside now, after all. No need to worry over destroying the hut. ¡°You¡¯re getting better at aiming!¡± Closing the door behind her, Velvet sighed. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re giving up already?¡± ¡°What are you, a practice mannequin? Get lost.¡± ¡°So rough¡­ Oh, right! Velvet, I hope you get strong enough in these two days, you¡¯re gonna need it!¡± Velvet turned around. ¡°Explain.¡± She saw Alrai grin from ear to ear. ¡°No, I don¡¯t think I will. See ya, my friend!¡± Sidestepping around a few trees, Alrai escaped from Velvet¡¯s sight pretty soon. Velvet, who just had a shiver run through her back. ¡­ Still feeling a bit suspicious, she exited the woods, and went to the Archives, or, the Second Tower. Similar to the First Tower, but older, she could only access the lowest floor at the start, where another Mirrs¡¯ type catgirl was waiting. I bet it''s Merrs. Velvet was going to speak to her, when another voice interrupted. ¡°Velvet? Oh, come here, help me carry this.¡± A woman, tall and thin, with bright long red hair and dark skin, dressed in a long, elegant but filled with hanging trinkets brown dress, handed her a pile of books, not waiting for her answer. ¡°Wait, who are you?¡± She still obeyed and followed her, because she was going up the Archive¡¯s floors! She had no right to complain about a free entrance! And neither could Merrs, who wanted to say something, but gave up once she saw the woman. Velvet carried the book pile over the spiral stone staircase, following the woman for three full floors, until she opened a door and entered. The room had everything one could expect from an archive, which is bookcases, tables with drawers, a lot of unclassified papers, a window so small the only light came from some gas lamps, secured to not cause a fire, and a rat. Velvet didn¡¯t see the last one, but heard it rummaging behind the bookcase. ¡°Put that right here, I barely have time¡­¡± She did as told, peeking over the titles, before staring at the woman, smiling. ¡°You¡¯re welcome, madam.¡± ¡°You¡¯re the one that should be thankful, as a knowledge mage, this entrance should be enough for you to memorize this room, am I wrong?¡± ¡°Indeed! Wow, you know so much about me, but I know nothing about you!¡± ¡°Is that so¡­ well then,¡± Tristan said, a soft smile in her lips, ¡°As much as I hate to use that word¡­ guess.¡± Chapter 69. Defenseless Velvet blinked a few times. ¡°Ceres?! But, yesterday you were a man!¡± She said, in a fake astonishment. Tristan smacked her arm with a book. ¡°Try again.¡± ¡°T, my best boss! I missed you so much!¡± She cheered, taking a step back. ¡°So, your real name is?¡± ¡°Tristan Esmaeili.¡± She had silver eyes, which meant, together with the red hair, that she was fully Ihilian. Huh, I had never seen someone from Ihilia. She didn¡¯t comment on that, since Tristan was more her superior than a friend. ¡°What about the Selection?¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t start until an hour. And sometimes we have to wait for several sloth mages that oversleep.¡± ¡°... Being a sloth mages sounds, every time, more and more strange.¡± ¡°It has the benefit of getting stronger the more they walk around dreams.¡± I should¡¯ve picked that Paradigm¡­ of course, if I did that I wouldn¡¯t have the skills to block corrupting memories, so I¡¯d lose control the moment I said Andras¡¯ name. In the end, knowledge is still the best for me. ¡°Oh, right. An¡­ acquaintance of mine said something happens once the Selection ends, and that I should become stronger. Do you know what it is?¡± ¡°Ceres should¡¯ve been the one telling you this¡­ but he¡¯s never had any apprentice, nor cared about the Mergifari¡¯s inner workings, and he is too prideful to admit when he is in the unknown and needs help,¡± She said the last part in a teasing tone, amused. ¡°But yes, there¡¯s¡­ you¡¯ve been to the Arena, right? Same thing, just without power penalties.¡± ¡°Ugh, so it¡¯s just great for people to take revenge, right?¡± ¡°Not really, you can just knock yourself out at the start. Let the combat mages who have something to prove duke it out and that¡¯s it. Unless you, or your Selector, care about being at the strongest top list.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t care about that, and Ceres¡­¡± ¡°He probably doesn¡¯t even know there¡¯s a list, but I guarantee you he has zero interest in it.¡± Velvet relaxed for a moment, before shaking her head. ¡°Still, even if I can knock myself out, I need to be ready for mishaps.¡± Alrai knows I can knock myself out, so, if he has issued a warning¡­ does he believe I¡¯m too proud to surrender? No, we fought together in the Arena, so he must have foreseen something preventing me from surrendering at the start. Suddenly looking at Tristan with pleading eyes, Velvet spoke sweetly, ¡°Tristaaaan~, what tricks can I use to get super duper strong in two days?¡± ¡°Offer your firstborn to a devil and make a pact.¡± She answered nonchalantly. ¡°I¡¯m not doing that. Oh, can I bring artifacts?¡± ¡°Ask yourself this: can I learn how to suddenly and correctly use artifacts in case of conflict in two days? Even when I have no experience handling them?¡± ¡°Can I?¡± Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°You like explosives way too much¡­¡± ¡°I don¡¯t need explosive artifacts, I already have my figurines. My current needs are defensive spells.¡± Velvet¡¯s main weakness was her own body. She fared well attacking at long distance, but, if someone like Igern or Alrai got their hands on her, they''d fold her like a chair. She had been toying with the idea of making a reinforced paper armor under her dress, like Cornelius¡¯s metal one, but magic armors worked better at stopping magic projectiles, not a full blunt hit. Yes, she might be protected from being chopped in half, in case of Igern¡¯s ice blades, but the kinetic energy of the hit would break her bones. ¡°Fufu, don¡¯t you know? Offense is the best defense.¡± Tristan mocked her. ¡°Hit them so hard, they cannot get to you.¡± ¡°That¡¯s plan number one. For number two, what if they get to me?¡± ¡°Team up with someone that can protect you.¡± She made a pause. ¡°Velvet, you DO understand your Paradigm is a support one, do you? You get no physical enhancement, faster reflexes or a resilient body.¡± She knew that, hell, she had one tapped Creftalia because she also was a support, and her defenses were trash like Velvet¡¯s. ¡°Trying to get defense is gonna be detrimental. Look, I could give you a staff that summons a five meters wide magic ball for protection. Nothing could touch you until it broke.¡± ¡°But?¡± She sensed the problem. ¡°It weighs two hundred kilograms. Two hundred kilograms you will have to drag, at least during the ten seconds it takes to set it on, and then the ten to set it off. You could not escape nor run with it, so, if two mages ganged up on you, you will be forced to watch how they slowly break the barrier with you inside, as if you were a birthday present.¡± ¡°Now, that staff is useful, if you have someone with you, and are only using it for protection until they can save you. But, if you don¡¯t, then it¡¯s just stalling your beating.¡± Velvet looked at her in silence, thinking. ¡°So, should I focus on mobility?¡± ¡°Guerrilla tactics? Hit and run, hit and run?¡± Tristan mused, to which Velvet nodded. ¡°I know some witches fly on brooms, but I don¡¯t know if mages can.¡± She hadn¡¯t seen any, after all. ¡°It is an option, but has problems.¡± So it WAS an option, Velvet thought, happy. Flying looked awesome, after all! ¡°Which ones?¡± ¡°Magic consumption is one, as is the miasma accumulation. You can fly too much and forget, but if it catches you in the middle of the ocean, it¡¯s a problem. Second, you become an easy target. You cannot hide in the air, and spells with a big area of effect can make you fall to your death in seconds. And third, experience. How fast can you fly in a forest without kissing a tree? Faster than your enemies can run? I don¡¯t think so, and even less if you only have two days.¡± ¡°But, if I only use it to get away, it can work.¡± As Tristan previously said, if she had no interest in making it to the top, running away was an option. Tristan sighed, but admitted it wasn¡¯t a bad option. ¡°If that¡¯s what you want¡­¡± She signaled at a bookcase. ¡°There should be some broom formation blueprints on that place. Remember, a broom is something personal to a mage, so don¡¯t copy the homework, and, and I know I don¡¯t need to tell you this, but, don¡¯t take anything out from here, oh, and¡­¡± Velvet saw her looking around the room. The whole room. ¡°I was bringing my shop''s book collection, but I didn¡¯t organize it. I want everything by name, date and category before you leave. The artifacts more magical to the left, the ones more mechanical to the right. The unfinished blueprints on the table, and the rejected ones in that drawer.¡± ¡°I also lost a screwdriver somewhere, put it on the table once you find it. I¡¯m leaving now, the Selection is about to start.¡± Tristan crossed the door, before turning around again. ¡°Oh, and¡­¡± ¡°And¡­?¡± ¡°The mouse is friendly, you can play with it. But don¡¯t eat it.¡± Do you think I eat mice?! Merrs it¡¯s the catgirl here! Even then¡­ the idea of eating mice filled her with a snake hunger, so she really wasn¡¯t in a position to defend herself. ¡°Of course. Good luck finding a future overworked apprentice! I mean, a good minimum wage worker! I mean, a happy, diligent mage searching for their non fraudulent dream j-¡± ¡°Velvet. Those blueprints aren¡¯t gonna organize themselves.¡± ¡°Sorry, sorry!¡± Tristan left, now definitely, so Velvet turned to look at the piles of documents, books, and random assortment of pages. ¡°All of this is for knowledge¡­¡± Chapter 70. Broom Ten hours of work later, Velvet had more or less finished. The broom diagram was ready, at least! She had looked at every broom blueprint, noticing the variations and differences on formations, paradigms and mage personalities. To explain it better, the term ¡®broom¡¯ included every artifact whose main purpose was allowing a mage to fly, while not being a closed space, like an airplane would be. So, if she were to get, let¡¯s say, a ship anchor, and apply a magic formation to it, she could divebomb on her enemies (and that ignoring how her body would end up after such impact). Of course, the heavier a broom was, the more magic it consumed. Reason why actual brooms were so popular. Light, easy to acquire, and the flying formation was easy to add. Fast production was a must for brooms, because they were always targeted, and usually destroyed after combat. They also had the problem with the formations getting overloaded if used too much too fast. And there was a similar issue when trying to make ¡®multipurpose brooms¡¯, like a cannon broom, or broom staff. Usually the magic formations conflicted between themselves, breaking down. Tristan¡¯s failed projects had several cannon brooms, in fact. And several gun-brooms. She really wanted a rideable gunpowder weapon, was Velvet¡¯s guess. She also wanted one! But focusing on failed ideas was not a good use of time, so she made several broom blueprints based on the working ones, in her mind, while she went through all the other projects, organizing them. The door creaked softly, and she heard a scuttering noise, before it closed, whatever made that noise leaving. A squeak made her stop looking at the door, and she slid her thumb over the mouse¡¯s head, patting it. They had become acquaintances after ten whole hours, and Velvet had even let it nibble on the corners of the failed blueprints. Someone lost? Mages are weird, I wouldn¡¯t be surprised¡­ Steps going in her direction changed her opinion soon, even more since they weren¡¯t Tristan¡¯s. Mmm¡­ combat boots, and the sound is long and heavy, with each step taking the same time to land¡­ Tall, well built, military trained¡­ Oh. She recognized that walk. Knocking on the door three times, the person waited for an answer. ¡°It¡¯s open! You can come in, Captain Kartal.¡± The man to whom Velvet owed her safety; current captain of the Scales of Poine, the organization responsible for keeping dangerous mages in check, and also doctor, Irsen Kartal, entered the room. ¡°Miss Velvet, glad to see you so¡­¡± He looked at Velvet, who had been reading and classifying files non stop for ten hours under the gas lamps lights, the doctor part in him wanting to put her under the sun for a while, even when it was already gone. ¡°Overworked.¡± ¡°I¡¯m almost finished, I promise! Tomorrow I¡¯ll spend the whole day outside!¡± She justified herself. ¡°I hope that¡¯s the case.¡± Velvet noticed something curled around Kartal¡¯s arm. It was a small silver dragon, pressing Kartal¡¯s uniform with its claws while looking at Velvet with its red eyes. Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. Was that the thing that opened the door at first? A tracker familiar? Covering the mouse with her hand, in case the dragon was feeling hungry, she asked. ¡°Were you searching for me?¡± ¡°Indeed. I have a favor to ask.¡± ¡°I¡¯m listening.¡± Kartal took a seat, and the small dragon slithered around his neck, keeping watch on Velvet all the time. I¡¯m not a criminal, stop. ¡°Are you knowledgeable about the Entrance Ceremony?¡± ¡°If you refer to the Arena thing for this year¡¯s selected, yes.¡± ¡°Great. Are you knowledgeable about Idirian nobility?¡± ¡°No.¡± Kartal nodded, expecting that answer. ¡°My selected it¡¯s the Second Prince, Syon Idrees. And I have sources confirming that he¡¯s going to have mages after him on that day.¡± ¡°Like assassins?¡± Velvet could hear Alrai¡¯s laugh on her head. ¡°No, I took care of those already. Desperate novice mages with no backup who have fallen under dangerous contracts, yes.¡± ¡°How big of a chance does he have at getting killed?¡± ¡°Zero, there¡¯s enough measures in place to guarantee his exit. But not enough to prevent him from getting permanently harmed.¡± Velvet thought about Madam Dorna burned face. There were enough ways to mess someone up without killing them. ¡°Can¡¯t he just¡­ knock himself out?¡± ¡°The Ceremony results are public. Idir is a military nation, if he exited too soon, he would be considered a coward and too weak, losing all the support he possesses.¡± ¡°You want me to protect him?¡± She asked. ¡°Which mages do you consider a threat?¡± She couldn¡¯t refuse Kartal''s petition. He was the one keeping the Grahams away from her head, so, if she refused, Kartal could just stop having her under his wing. Adeline Graham surely would appreciate that. Nothing was free in mage society, after all. Did Alrai know about this? Maybe Adeline knew, she told Ethra, and Ethra told Alrai. Or maybe it was Siberiald¡¯s idea. It didn¡¯t matter, Velvet was suspicious of all of them. ¡°The ones carrying this family''s seals.¡± He pulled out a folded stack of papers, where ten different seals were depicted, together with realistic drawings of all the novice mages those families selected, with information about paradigms, skills, age, height, place of birth, background, Esca opening¡­ Velvet¡¯s mouth flinched, amazed and a bit curious. Did Irsen Kartal have similar documents about her? Fifteen mages were depicted, and, with so much information, Velvet wasn¡¯t worried about surprises. Give enough information to a knowledge mage, and let them figure out the rest. Three of those mages had a danger note next to their names. Those were the ones who had killed one or more mages outside the Mergifari. In the documents were summaries about the murdered mages, the method used, and the conflict. Do I also have a danger next to my name? Probably, next to Cornelius¡¯ photo. A mage from the Coaltheno family also was included. Alrai had mentioned their intentions to move to Idir. Who is trying to get the Second Prince killed? This family wants to leave Charlampia for Idir, so¡­ She thought about it. ¡°How many princes does Idir have?¡± ¡°Three.¡± So the First was dead or dying, and the Third wanted the throne? Kartal didn¡¯t explain it to her, but he didn¡¯t need to. Velvet understood. But, Idir had a god, a living god, Idir himself. Didn¡¯t he care about who sat on the throne? Or, perhaps, that was his plan. Kartal said that Second Prince Syon couldn¡¯t surrender on the Arena, because Idir had no need for a cowardly prince. Was this part of the trials to decide a king? Honestly, Velvet didn¡¯t care about who ruled Idir. She cared about being on Kartal¡¯s good graces, so, if Kartal wanted Syon, Syon was it. ¡°Of course, if everything goes well, you will be rewarded.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Velvet raised her head from the pages suddenly. She wasn¡¯t expecting such a word! Kartal repressed a chuckle. ¡°I won¡¯t tell you to put yourself in danger without giving anything back.¡± ¡°Ten thousand auris, and a couple of Strangler Humming Figs.¡± Kartal rummaged through his pocket, pulling out a small black ball, before handing it to Velvet. She took it, peeking inside. A tropical forest was contained, with the trees in question coiling around some others. It seemed that they noticed Velvet, starting to make a humming noise. It was low, but deep, a sound that penetrated Velvet¡¯s soul, making her stop looking to massage her head and close her eyes shut. ¡°Ugh¡­ those things have quite the temper.¡± ¡°Their branches can be alchemized with normal paper.¡± Kartal had picked something that Velvet needed. She had pets whose parts could be used to give effects to normal paper, but nothing to increase the paper''s own qualities. ¡°I see¡­¡± Still suffering from a deep headache, she tried to return the container, but Kartal refused. ¡°Their branches will be ready for recollection tomorrow. Use them to strengthen yourself for your mission.¡± Both of them knew that Kartal was doing more than enough just with his presence, and a reward was more something to keep Velvet happy with him, and loyal. He wanted her as a future member of the Scales of Poine, and, if she started feeling too unfairly treated, Velvet could become a danger. After all, she was part of the class of mages that murdered another. Chapter 71. Visitor Murderous mages were always a problem to Kartal, especially the ones who didn¡¯t seem worried about taking a life. Families like the Siberetti, who specialized in assassination, were shunned and distant, and for good reason. Killing a normal human being had no effect on a mage, since most of them didn¡¯t acknowledge human rights unless forced, but a mage killing another mage always caused problems. Cross-corruption, the name given to the effects of being close to an Esca tainted with blood. Mages could feel when another mage had killed a third. It wasn¡¯t known why, but it seemed to be related to the Esca. And that strained their minds. Mental state was important to a mage, possibly the most important thing, since it was the only thing preventing them from becoming witches or fully succumbing to corruption. Cross-corruption made mages increasingly paranoid, alert and hyperreactive, which made fights easier to erupt, thus making the mages who killed even more prone to violence and murder, which, in turn, made mages more paranoid, making a full circle. If there was a reason for Cornelius to employ Siberina¡¯s help in killing a mage, and waiting for her instead of straight up killing Velvet to take Baraviodos back, avoiding a blood-reeking Esca was it. As the future head of the Graham family, he couldn¡¯t have mages avoiding him. Kartal was not of clean hands, either, so a part of him always preferred dealing with mages in a similar situation. He had more than enough strength to keep them in check, and, by making those shunned mages feel safe and secure under him, he guaranteed that the Scales of Poine was formed by mages who scared the living daylights of normal mages. To them, the Scales of Poine reeked of blood and violence. To Kartal, it was home. And he wanted Velvet to understand that. ¡°Oh¡­¡± Velvet said, taking back the container. ¡°Thanks in advance.¡± Kartal noticed she seemed to be waiting for him to say or do something. ¡°Tomorrow the Selection will finish before midday. Tell Murrs you want to access the Riverside Villa, that I¡¯m waiting for you. I¡¯ll introduce your mission companions.¡± ¡°Eh? Companions?¡± They stared at each other for a while. ¡°... Velvet, you¡¯re a support mage, of course you need companions.¡± Kartal was confused; was she really expecting to be tossed on a mission for the Idirian nobility on her own? ¡°Right, haha¡­¡± She let out a nervous laugh. ¡°How many?¡± ¡°Two and Syon himself.¡± Kartal wants a group with high mobility, more than high power. He is worried about us taking too much time to group together. Four mages can watch for each other¡¯s back, without getting in the other¡¯s way. Of course, before reaching conclusions, I¡¯ll need to meet the other members, and know their Paradigms. ¡°I¡¯ll go there tomorrow, then.¡± She said, waiting for Kartal to add something. Kartal sighed, looking at the room. ¡°How much work remains?¡± ¡°Only an hour¡­ maybe two.¡± This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°No, out. Go get fresh air.¡± ¡°But-¡± ¡°No buts. If Tristan complains, tell her it is the doctor''s orders. Doctor Kartal¡¯s orders.¡± Surrendering, Velvet got up, feeling a bit nauseous. ¡°Okay, okay¡­ I¡¯m going outside and touching grass¡­¡± ¡°And drink water, and have dinner.¡± ¡°Yessir.¡± After stretching her whole body, Velvet escaped Kartal¡¯s, and Kartal¡¯s dragon judging gaze, leaving the archives. This time she stopped at a shop to buy food and essential items. Since the Selection was coming to a close, the official shops were moving inside the Mergifari, while the temporary ones were leaving the island. Like Tristan¡¯s, for example. Now, what once had been an empty space, except for the gardens and the three towers, was becoming, step by step, lively. Most shops were still outside, stalling the most they could, but, in a few days, everything would be in their place. Once she got most of the stuff, Velvet went back to the hut. The night had fallen, even in the forest. Especially in the forest. The skittering noise of bugs and nocturnal animals welcomed Velvet, who lighted a paper figurine to illuminate the path without stopping. She put the figure at the end of a stick, preventing the forest and herself from burning. The figurine sat obediently on the tip, dangling its legs. It reminded her of the midnight escapades she made on Casrey, with the difference that she used a gas lamp in the past. Several curious fireflies got close to the paper figurine, who responded by waving its arms furiously, scaring them off. ¡°What a temper¡­ hm?¡± Noticing an unmoving light further away, she stopped. It wasn¡¯t a bug, it was a human. Raising her stick, Velvet showed some light on the stranger, making them look at her. ¡°Oh, Igern.¡± The light Velvet had seen was a cigarette. ¡°Smoking in the darkness? And in a forest?¡± He took a deep puff, blowing the smoke in the direction opposite Velvet. ¡°The Queen doesn¡¯t like the smell.¡± ¡°But isn¡¯t hiding away too excessive? I didn¡¯t think of you as a bad boy.¡± She teased, grinning when one of Igern¡¯s eyebrows twitched. ¡°What you think doesn¡¯t concern me.¡± Always so sensitive, gentle and considerate, Igern ended the conversation. ¡°Always a pleasure speaking with you! Oh, right. Do you plan on taking revenge on Alrai and me on the Arena? Or will you just focus on Dianthus?¡± Velvet knew Igern was petty, and powerful, which was an extremely bad combination, but she also knew he really, really hated Dianthus. She didn¡¯t know why, but a part of her supposed it was a rivalry that got way out of hand, arriving at a dangerous level. Igern possibly got his shit kicked out too many times against Dianthus, so, if he went searching for Dianthus from the start, Velvet was confident Igern would lose before reaching her. Igern finished the cigarette, threw it to the floor and stepped on it. A faint blue light came from it, showing that he used magic to guarantee it was fully turned off. ¡°I¡¯ll focus on whoever I find first.¡± ¡°True, you¡¯re not a chaser.¡± Velvet rejoiced over Igern¡¯s annoyed face, before taking a step back. ¡°Well, I have stuff to do, so, as much as parting ways hurt, I may go back home.¡± She took a few steps. ¡°Do not weep for me!¡± Two more. ¡°Don¡¯t hold my hand, I must attend to my duties!¡± Some more. ¡°I¡¯ll never forg-¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you leave in silence already?¡± ¡°Okay, okay!¡± Knowing when to stop pestering the human version of an angry porcupine, Velvet left, now without stopping, in the direction of her hut. Arriving at the door, unlocking it, and opening it, Velvet¡¯s bag fell to the floor. A body was hanging from the ceiling. Dangling slightly without wind, from side to side, its back faced Velvet. Slowly, as if the corpse had noticed her, it started turning. Black rope tied its legs and arms, so tightly that the bones under it should be broken. Symbols carved on its skin bulged, a consequence of the maggots living inside, feasting on its rotting meat. No one was pushing it, the corpse wanted to look at Velvet. She reacted fast, throwing the burning paper figurine at it. The figurine embraced the corpse¡¯s head, igniting itself. It didn¡¯t explode, Velvet didn¡¯t want to destroy her house, but that was enough for it to become unable to look at her, burning the rope and making the body slam the floor. Her reasoning was simple: if it wanted to look directly at her, she must do everything in her power to prevent it. The scorching smell of burning meat filled the room, the corpse convulsing, muffled groans coming from its sealed mouth. Rushing towards the burning corpse, Velvet fumbled with her pocket, pulled out the Strangler Humming Figs¡¯ container, and tossed the corpse inside. She didn¡¯t know what that corpse could do, and killing it might trigger a curse. Yes, she was gambling the Strangler Humming Figs¡¯ lives, but she had no other pet capable of dealing with it. Losing the trees would hurt her, but losing her life was worse. Graveyards were filled with brave people. The Strangler Humming Figs, sensing a threat, started singing, with so much force that Velvet had to release the ball, which started vibrating, affecting her. She didn¡¯t pick it back until the vibration stopped, and, even then, she only took a peek. The corpse wasn¡¯t moving anymore, laying over a pool of rotten blood and dead maggots, slowly covering the ground. Velvet took off her bracelet, pulled out the Fire Salamander, and set it on the floor. Then, she connected that container with the other, passing the rotting corpse and everything it had touched into it, preventing the trees from making contact. Only after checking that the trees showed no apparent damage, and the corpse wasn¡¯t corroding the formation, did she allow herself to relax, taking a deep breath. Were Kartal enemies making a move before the Arena? Or was it the Graham¡¯s? Well, on the Mergifari, someone watched over everyone. Bracing herself, Velvet called. ¡°Udulluay.¡± Chapter 72. Preventive measures The familiar sound of fluttering wings welcomed Velvet, with the owl causing them landing on a chair¡¯s recliner. Balancing himself, Udulluay stared at Velvet with his round eyes. ¡°You called.¡± ¡°Yes, someone put a¡­ corpse inside my home.¡± Velvet had come to the realization that Udulluay didn¡¯t prevent accidents, and mostly dedicated himself to observing. There was also the fact that, as a devil, he didn¡¯t really care for saving or protecting humans. As long as his rules were followed, he barely complained. And the no-magic allowed rule only affected the market. ¡°Agorn Krischa, twenty minutes ago.¡± One of the novice mages Kartal informed me about. Sloth Paradigm, which explains how he entered without a key or breaking a window. Hm, are they using Igern¡¯s ¡®take the support out first¡¯ approach? And before the Arena even started¡­ Velvet grinned. They must be sooo scared of Kartal¡¯s choices. Oh, I¡¯m getting fired up thinking about what mages he picked. Udulluay interrupted her. ¡°Do you want to file a complaint?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯ll talk with Kartal first. I already know his identity, after all!¡± There was barely any damage done, so Velvet was sure she would barely be compensated. Udulluay kept staring at her in silence, worrying Velvet. ¡°Something the matter?¡± She asked. ¡°You will be in danger.¡± ¡°... Wouldn¡¯t the Director intervene if things get really bad?¡± She hoped so, at least. ¡°Yes.¡± Udulluay left the conversation at that, flying away. Biting her lower lip softly, Velvet turned around. Aside from the hanged corpse, the intruder hadn¡¯t touched anything. Not that Velvet had left anything worth stealing. Aside from her clothes, she carried most of her stuff in her person. A burning smell called her attention. The Fire Salamander had placed itself inside the chimney, trying to reignite the coal¡¯s remains. Fire salamanders were amphibious, still needing water to live. But, they had the instinct of eating burning coals. In the wild, they burned fallen branches, before swallowing them in small pieces. The fire Salamander''s stomach contained a secretion that slowed down the consumption, keeping the coals burning at the minimum. That was because their principal prey was the toxic river crab, an animal recognized by its purple color and extreme poisonous shell. Poison that, by putting the crab in boiling water, became harmless. The Fire Salamander knew that, so it ate the raw toxic crab and boiled it inside its stomach with the burning coals. Now, Velvet''s fire salamander was raised in captivity, fed with All-purpose worms. It still needed to eat coal, since, apart from feeding, the act also included several health benefits. But, it was an amphibian. Amphibians shouldn¡¯t frolic on top of ashes. Grabbing the slippery thing, who refused to release the coal piece in its mouth, Velvet took it to the bathroom, carefully cleaning it and removing the ash. ¡°Can¡¯t you see I was busy? Huh, you¡¯re pretty warm to the touch.¡± Getting a hand freed, Velvet played with her fingers, testing the salamander¡¯s skin slime. The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. It was a fire retardant. Not useful to her, since applying it to her figurines would stop them from exploding, but it could be useful in the future. It was also poisonous, like normal salamanders¡¯ skin, producing irritation were she to rub her eyes or mouth. The salamander lifted its big head to look at Velvet, and wiggled its tail. Its size was close to a one year old child, with six small legs, two of which were holding onto Velvet¡¯s arm. She couldn¡¯t put the fire salamander with the bomber frog, or with the space-leaping toad, since they were natural enemies, and the feathered spider had a whole different habitat. ¡°Ngh, for tonight, it can sleep in the bathtub, tomorrow I¡¯ll buy an empty container. It¡¯s so bad it''s so slippery and slimy, it would''ve been great as a plushie furnace.¡± ¡°Unless you want it with you.¡± She told Hyde. The demonic spider had been silent this whole time, working on a ¡®project¡¯ after seeing Tristan¡¯s blueprints. ¡°No.¡± Was Hyde¡¯s short answer. ¡°Go to sleep, tomorrow you need to do brooms, and I will have this formation ready for placing.¡± Leaving the salamander inside the bathtub, at least for now, she cleaned her hands from the poisonous slime, went back to the entrance, picked the bag, and made a simple dinner. She deserved some respite, after working the whole day just to come home to a corpse. After she was done, she gave the salamander some coals she picked from the chimney, and some All-purpose worms, before going to sleep. Maybe it was because she had overworked her brain during the day, ending mentally exhausted, but nothing weird happened during her dream. The next day, after getting everything ready, Hyde announced his project¡¯s end. ¡°Remember when I asked you for the feathered spider formation?¡± ¡°To collect and store your own webs? Yes.¡± ¡°Now I''ve got enough spider silk. Together with Tristan¡¯s blueprints, I made a spider web formation to cover the house and the surroundings. No one will get closer without us noticing from now on.¡± ¡°Oh, Hyde, that¡¯s awesome! You¡¯re the bestest demonestest in hellestest!¡± She praised, chuckling when Hyde scoffed. ¡°We need to set it up first. You can practice making brooms from branches, while I set the webs.¡± Velvet nodded, getting to work. She still had half a day before Kartal finished with the Selection, which was more than enough time to set the formation and understand the basics of broom riding. ¡­ The long stick levitated in the air, tumbling every now and then. Velvet pressed down with both hands; she wasn¡¯t seated on it, just weight testing, when it creaked. Breaking right in the middle, the half stick fled off instantly, colliding with a tree and breaking down in a rain of splinters. Velvet tsked, noting the mistakes, grabbing another stick. ¡°I¡¯m done here, go north.¡± Hyde said. Stopping the new formation, Velvet picked up her things, walking some distance away from the hut, in a circular path. Behind her, nothing could be seen with the naked eye, but, if someone employed special means, they would become able to see several golden threads, stuck to trees, stones, and crossing over the air. ¡°Here is fine.¡± Velvet stopped, left Hyde to his devices, and started the new broom formation. The previous was too rigid, and broke down once it couldn¡¯t hold on. So she added more elasticity in the formation this time. Two hand press¡­ check. Lifting me¡­ check. Lowering the flying broom, Velvet sat sideways. She wanted a position that allowed her to jump if something felt wrong. Then, slowly, very, very slowly, her feet left the ground. Humans were land creatures. One didn¡¯t understand so by flying in an airship, but, flying on a broom made Velvet realize how much she loved when her feet were on the ground. Not over the ground, on the ground, touching it. This will take a lot of practice just to get used to¡­ and, not to say about actually flying in combat. She moved left, right, up (no more than two meters height), at a leisurely pace. Since Hyde was working, she mostly made circles, not going far away. ¡°This place is done.¡± ¡°Good. I wanna try going faster.¡± She got down, picked her things and sat on the broom again. Except this time she was sitting with one leg on each side, like horse riding. That position was more stable to make turns and sudden movements, but getting down was harder. Flying at a human run speed, she passed the hut¡¯s roof, going to the other side. ¡°Some tiles are broken, I¡¯ll need to do repair- Ack!¡± Velvet coughed, almost hitting a tree. ¡°I swallowed a bug!¡± ¡°Free protein.¡± Hyde mocked her. ¡°Reason number one why you need to keep your mouth shut while flying.¡± ¡°What¡¯s reason number two?¡± ¡°You stop paying attention to the ro- Velvet, tree!¡± Barely dodging the tree, Velvet snickered. ¡°Scared yourself there, hm?¡± ¡°You did that on purpose, didn¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Guess.¡± Chapter 73. Riverside Villa Completing the spider web formation, Velvet went back to the hut to activate and calibrate it. Formations were drawn in a circular or cylindrical manner, to ease the magic circulation. Explained why pet containers were round, brooms and staffs were cylindrical, and most mages fancied towers. Escas principally grew on the palms for this exact reason. Most mages casted magic using their hands, because fingers were cylindrical, facilitating the magic transference. Hats also were both round and cylindrical. Perfect for mages. Going back to Hyde¡¯s formation. Its core was under the roof¡¯s tiles, entering Velvet¡¯s room and hanging there. A sachet, made from spider webs wrapped¡­ something. ¡°What did you put as a core?¡± ¡°Dried bugs. Corpses work well as stabilizers, even when they aren''t human.¡± Velvet¡¯s smile twitched. ¡°Well, at least you¡¯ve sucked them for all they¡¯re worth, so no rotting smell¡­¡± She pondered for a moment. ¡°If I hang a dried bug sachet on a broom, will it fly better?¡± ¡°Probably.¡± ¡°Do you have spares?¡± ¡°I can have some for tomorrow.¡± She remembered Hyde¡¯s eating habits on the train. He munched on bugs at a fast pace, making crunching sounds. Velvet believed he ate them whole, but maybe he just crushed them to make sucking the insides easier, leaving the destroyed carcasses behind. The sachet didn¡¯t look bumpy, which supported her theory. ¡°Great.¡± Getting to work, they calibrated the formation to warn Hyde when something over forty kilograms stepped on the floor threads. For the air ones, if they broke, Hyde would get notified. Apart from hares, foxes, and birds, who didn¡¯t pass the weight limit, there weren¡¯t animals big enough to trigger the formation. The safe part of the forest simply wasn¡¯t big enough. Setting up the formation and doing flying tests had taken almost half a day, so Velvet made food and went to Kartal¡¯s Riverside Villa. After checking on the salamander, who was fine. The big, expensive houses weren¡¯t ¡®on¡¯ the Mergifari, which was the reason why she hadn¡¯t seen castles, manors or private areas around, only the residential edifice that held the middle class mages, where Gertine stayed. Instead, they were placed in pocket dimensions, as Murrs explained to her, all of them accessible (only with the owner¡¯s permission) from the First Tower. Once Murrs confirmed Velvet¡¯s permission to access the Riverside Villa, she simply told Velvet to ¡®Enter the elevator¡¯. She had never used an elevator. Like the telephone, they were relatively new inventions, their uses not widespread. It was a small metallic room, whose door closed once she got in, before starting to shake, to Velvet¡¯s dismay. Luckily for her, it only lasted for a minute, before the door opened to a garden. Once she left the elevator, the door closed behind her, becoming part of a decorative monument. Wow¡­ Velvet thought, looking at the green, neatly trimmed area. It was flat, with several monuments in white marble depicting dragons next to some bushes cut in fancy shapes, this must be hella expensive¡­ are the peacocks included? Or did Kartal bring them in? Apart from peacocks, who were extremely attention-calling, even more colorful bird species flew around, some with curiosity towards Velvet, some with wariness. The sound of running water came from several spots in the distance, some closer and some further away, due to the canals around the garden transporting the water. Taking a deep breath of fresh, relaxing air, Velvet started walking towards the direction of the villa, in the pocket dimension¡¯s center. Stolen story; please report. Every few steps, a white thing crossed her path, hiding when she looked for it. ¡°Hello?¡± She said, once the thing in question flew too close to her face for comfort. ¡°Hell-o, he-llo!¡± Something repeated, in a strange, broken tone. Velvet turned around, seeing a red parrot on top of a statue. Not the thing responsible¡­ at least not responsible for bothering Velvet, since she was pretty sure it was responsible for the expensive estatue¡¯s scratches and missing parts. The parrot climbed down the dragon statue, using its beak and claws, before reaching the edge. Then, it started to make clicking noises at Velvet, stretching in her direction, calling for her. ¡°Aren¡¯t you a bird? Can¡¯t you fly?¡± Still, she went to the bird, offering her arm. Her gloves were thick enough, anyway. ¡°Too high! Scary, scar-y!¡± The parrot said, climbing to Velvet¡¯s arm. Something skittered in the bush, but she pretended to not hear it. ¡°And I¡¯m not high enough?¡± The parrot answered by making noises, bobbing its head up and down repeatedly. ¡°Hehe, look Hyde, I could become a pirate right now! Oh, if I had known, I would¡¯ve brought a pirate hat¡­¡± She supposed that this parrot wasn¡¯t a magic familiar, just a normal bird, only a bit more talkative than most. ¡°Higher than Lulu! Lulu is short!¡± The thing on the bushes got out upon hearing that. It was Kartal¡¯s small dragon, the one who looked at Velvet like she owed it money. It growled annoyed at the parrot. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re right! Lulu is short!¡± Velvet repeated, mocking the dragon. ¡°Short, short! Like a tin can!¡± The parrot followed. For a reptile, it made an expression closely resembling annoyance, before exhaling flames at them. Small flames, who didn¡¯t even reach Velvet. ¡°Wow, it just got colder!¡± Velvet said. ¡°Cold, so cold!¡± The parrot said, pretending it was shivering. ¡°Kekekekekeke!¡± It laughed, and Velvet laughed together with it, using the same tone, mocking Kartal¡¯s dragon. Someone cleared their throat, stopping the poor little dragon¡¯s mockery. Velvet turned around, meeting face to face with Irsen Kartal. She had the decency of looking a bit ashamed, unlike the parrot, who kept snickering. ¡°O-oh! Captain Kartal, is the Selection over already?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± The dragon climbed Kartal, coiling around his arms. ¡°Luraulu is still a young dragon, her temper will calm down with time. But,¡± Kartal explained. ¡°Dragons hold grudges for a long time.¡± ¡°I am sorry.¡± Velvet lied. For being caught. She thought. The dragon has started it, after all! Kartal didn¡¯t say anything, taking a step aside. Someone came out from behind him, assuming it was time for introductions. A guy, around Gertine¡¯s age, dressed in noble Idirian clothes; a long silk coat, green in color with golden flower patterns, white pants, long brown hair and purple eyes, androgynous in appearance, spoke. ¡°Welcome, I¡¯m the Second Prince of Idir, Syon Idrees.¡± Velvet grabbed the edges of her dress, doing a curtsy. ¡°Velvet Consestella Dobastro.¡± Syon nodded a bit. He seemed pretty inexpressive, Velvet noticed. Not having the arrogance of nobility like Ethra, but having the delicate and frail appearance of someone who never worked once in his life. He can at least protect himself a bit, right? ¡°We can wait at the villa,¡± Kartal said, interrupting the uncomfortable silence that had started to take root. ¡°The other two will come soon.¡± ¡°I need to speak to you first.¡± Velvet said. ¡°What is it?¡± Kartal asked. Velvet motioned to Syon with her eyes, which meant that the conversation should be private, but Kartal refused with his head. ¡°Someone snuck into my house. Left a strange corpse.¡± Velvet gave the container to Kartal, who looked inside. ¡°Tell me how it went, leave no details.¡± Velvet recalled everything, from when she entered, to when Udulluay told her the intruder¡¯s name. Kartal returned the container, speaking. ¡°You made the correct choice. That thing contained a curse, if you had looked in its eyes, the wraith inside would¡¯ve possessed you, making you feel the same pain it suffered.¡± ¡°A wraith?¡± Syon asked. ¡°It¡¯s inside the container. From outside, it might look like a blur.¡± He said. Velvet looked inside again, noticing the grayish blur. She showed the container to Syon, who was curious. ¡°Do you know how wraiths are made?¡± Velvet noticed Kartal was explaining it to her, not to Syon. ¡°You noticed the black ropes on the corpse, right? It¡¯s a way to prevent a soul from leaving a body after death, condemning it to eternal suffering.¡± Syon nodded. ¡°It¡¯s one of the punishments for traitors.¡± ¡°This person wasn¡¯t a traitor, they were someone who was in a bad place at a bad moment.¡± Kartal¡¯s eyes met Velvet¡¯s, speaking directly at her. ¡°Who crossed paths with a mage who needed a human to inflict enough suffering until they became a monster.¡± Just like Nathaniel. Velvet finished Kartal¡¯s unspoken sentence. Chapter 74. Concept ¡°I guess that the one who made the wraith wasn¡¯t Agorn Krischa, and he only was tasked with the setup.¡± Velvet said. ¡°Yes, sloth mages are not specialized in the death domain.¡± Kartal answered, taking a pocket watch from his pocket and looking at the time. ¡°Speaking of death, those two should be coming now.¡± So the real culprit was one of the selector families. ¡°Which Paradigm has power over the death domain?¡± She asked, fully intending to obtain knowledge. She hadn¡¯t forgotten the pile of reanimated bodies the escaped demon used. ¡°None. Envy and wrath do have some skills to influence a corpse¡¯s grudges, but death spells don¡¯t belong to the enchanters category. They belong to the sorcerer¡¯s.¡± Acquiring magic had two ways to be accomplished. One, opening a gate to the Primeval Sea, the common, available for anyone way, opening the Esca, and two, being blessed by a deity, which was harder. Someone like the Queen of Arhontissa was in the second category, Velvet was, at least, ninety percent sure of that (if gods were the ones picking royalty, on their own continent, surely they would bless them). ¡°Can demons believe in gods?¡± Velvet asked Hyde. Necromancy was death¡¯s domain, so, for a demon to use it¡­ ¡°No.¡± ¡°Then how?¡± ¡°Ask Udulluay, not me. I didn¡¯t consume that demon.¡± Velvet tsked in a low voice, before hearing steps coming in their direction. Two persons, the first one made her understand what Kartal meant by ¡®Speaking of death¡¯. He was pale, like a paper sheet, and so were his pupils. Black hair, which Velvet noticed was dyed, and black clothes, consisting of a long, high collar jacket, boots and tight pants, everything adorned with silver chains and crosses. Even his face had some silver ornaments, especially his ears. A goth? She recognized the strange attire from magazines. The other was a girl. Blonde, her hair tied up high, blue sharp eyes, dressed in a taiga hunter attire, characterized by being made with reindeer skin, possessing fluffy parts to conserve heat, as to help dealing with Mirel¡¯s boreal forests, but lacking a shotgun. Velvet recognized her. It was the girl she had beaten up with plants on the Arena, who kept shouting at her to stop hiding and ¡®prove she had balls¡¯. Nope, actually I dooon¡¯t remember her. At all. Wow, new people! ¡°Velvet, these are Visna Skogul and Drifa Kroschei. Skogul, Drifa, Velvet Consestella Dobastro.¡± Skogul was the goth, Drifa was the taiga hunter. ¡°Velvet?¡± Drifa said, tilting her head. ¡°Why do I find the name familiar?¡± So she isn¡¯t a knowledge mage, good. Not that Velvet knew that already, since she had never met that girl before! ¡°From the fabric.¡± Velvet clarified. ¡°Hey, do you wanna see a wraith?¡± Goths liked ghosts, probably. And hunters liked dead things. Probably. ¡°Oh shit, where?¡± Having changed the conversation theme, Velvet gave them the container¡­ ignoring Kartal¡¯s inquisitor look. Hey now, I¡¯m trying to prevent animosities on the team! You should be thanking me for fixing my own problems! Skogul grabbed first the container, just as Velvet had planned. He examined it, turning the container in his hand. After arriving at conclusions, he spoke. ¡°Hm. Male, thirty-two, malnourished, from Idirian origin. The wraith only has a few months. Probably a tricked tramp.¡± The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Velvet nodded in fake understanding. ¡°Where did you get it? Making artificial wraiths is prohibited by Mr Kartal here. Death penalty included.¡± Skogul asked. ¡°The friends waiting for us at the Arena left it at my house.¡± ¡°Oh, they got started already?¡± Forgetting why she ¡®remembered¡¯ Velvet, Drifa spoke, changing her weight from one foot to another. ¡°Can I buy it?¡± Skogul said that looking at Kartal, even when the wraith was Velvet¡¯s possession. He was probably asking about his opinion, though. ¡°What is done is done.¡± Kartal said. ¡°400 auris.¡± Skogul offered Velvet. ¡°450¡± ¡°400 is a good price, the best you would be offered.¡± ¡°450, but you can use information about death magic, or something similar as part of the payment. Satisfy me, and get it for 400.¡± ¡°Deal, but¡­ I don¡¯t know if the Prince of Idir will be okay with me proselytizing¡­¡± Skogul looked at Syon, who had been silently listening all this time. Velvet supposed Kartal refused to intervene or give his opinion since he wouldn¡¯t be in the Arena, so they needed to come to an understanding on their own. Their teamwork tomorrow depended on that. ¡°I would be against it if we were in Idir, but the Mergifari has its own jurisdiction, and the freedom of religion is one of them. As long as I maintain the status of Mergifari¡¯s guest, I will follow its rules.¡± Syon answered fast, clearly knowing beforehand how to answer those types of questions. ¡°Alas, you can simply tell her outside the Riverside Villa, without needing to consider my stance.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll¡­ take that as a yes.¡± Skogul cleared his throat, turning satisfied to Velvet. ¡°I am a believer of the Finality Triumvirate. Composed by the three Mother Goddesses of Horror.¡± Even when only four gods inhabited the land currently, that didn¡¯t mean there were only four. Materialized and actually ruling? Yes, only four. But above them were the conceptual gods, who ruled over concepts like time, death, space¡­ Maybe there were more types of gods, but Velvet only was sure of those two categories. ¡°The goddess of Death Haashi, the goddess of Darkness, and the goddess of Despair.¡± ¡°Sounds nice. Very welcoming.¡± Velvet said with sarcasm. ¡°Do you have a better name?¡± ¡°Goddess of the last stop, goddess of the lightless, and goddess of¡­ the lost.¡± ¡°You can perfume a corpse all you want, but that won¡¯t stop it from rotting.¡± ¡°On Idir we mummify the dead.¡± Syon interrupted. ¡°So they don¡¯t rot.¡± ¡°We put them on boats and set them on fire on the sea.¡± Velvet said. ¡°So they don¡¯t rot.¡± ¡°We bury the dead on frozen soil in Mirel.¡± Drifa said. ¡°So they don¡¯t rot.¡± ¡°Can I continue? The Death is-¡± ¡°Why are you only naming one?¡± She asked, when it was clear he wasn¡¯t naming the others. ¡°I am a blessed of Death, as you can see; I don¡¯t know the other names.¡± Looking at him up and down, Velvet commented. ¡°Well, you look pale and sick, but I thought it was a fashion choice.¡± Skogul laughed. ¡°Sick, eh? Not dead? Because I am dead, miss.¡± ¡°Only the dead can be blessed by Death.¡± Flinching at that, Velvet nodded slowly. ¡°Isn¡¯t it difficult to proselytize with that tiny little detail?¡± ¡°Not if you do it at a hospital.¡± When Kartal squinted at that, Skogul raised his arms in a surrendering motion. ¡°That¡¯s how I was convinced, I didn¡¯t do it!¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you Mirelian? Who even does that on his territory?¡± Mirel had the Inquisition active, after all. ¡°Oh, the Inquisition showed up. Burned the guy at the stake, and made sure no one in the hospital could remember him.¡± ¡°Except you.¡± ¡°Yeah, about that¡­ I¡¯m sure there¡¯s plenty of wanted posters of me around the continent¡­¡± He scratched his head. ¡°Oh, I can give you the ritual for the Mother Goddess of Darkness. That would make the wraith cost 400, right?¡± ¡°Yeah, sure.¡± As a prayer for a Goddess of Horror, just speaking it could cause disasters, so Skogul wrote it on different pieces of paper that Velvet gave to him, alternating the lines so as to not write it continuously. Done that, he paid the remaining 400 auris, and Velvet gave him the wraith. Skogul brought the container to his mouth, before pulling the wraith out and swallowing it. Velvet only saw a faint mist going down his throat, noticing he also had metal pieces on the tongue. Guess being dead kinda kills your pain tolerance¡­ Kartal clapped once, calling for their attention. ¡°Now that presentations are over, I want to test your teamwork. Follow me.¡± He went to a clear, vast zone, free of statues and birds (even Velvet¡¯s friendly parrot left). Then, he turned around. ¡°Alright, we start in ten seconds. Get in position.¡± ¡°Who are we fighting?¡± Drifa asked. Velvet saw Kartal¡¯s mouth curl in a mocking smile for less than a second, before it disappeared, forever gone. ¡°Well, who is standing in front of you four?¡± Was Kartal¡¯s answer. Rolling his sleeves up, and making sure they wouldn''t curl down, Kartal spoke again. ¡°Five.¡± Chapter 75. Now do eight Upon hearing Kartal¡¯s words, a chill ran through Velvet''s, and everyone else¡¯s spine. That wasn¡¯t a fight they could win! It was a fight they had to survive! Unanimously, and without exchanging a single word, nor a single gaze, they all used the five remaining seconds to get as far away as they could. Well, Velvet thought, at least that would answer one of my questions. Kartal¡¯s Paradigm. Due to their cowardly reaction, they gifted Kartal the first move, who gladly took it once the five seconds passed. With a swift movement, a paint brush appeared on his hand, and he started tracing shapes in front of him. Paint appeared, following Kartal¡¯s hand movements, not dropping on the ground, maintaining its position in the air. A mouth, a face, and two eyes were progressively drawn, followed by the rest of the body. ¡°Bermu Coaltheno.¡± Velvet identified the mage. It had only taken Kartal a few seconds to draw, and he was already moving towards them, like a real enemy. ¡°Any details we can use?¡± Syon asked. ¡°Wrath Paradigm, close range attacker, the more he gets hurt, the harder he can hurt you.¡± She recited the most important bits, based on their situation. ¡°The easiest way to deal with him is using movement restriction spells and beating him with long range spells.¡± Just as she finished saying that, she saw Skugol grabbing and dragging Drifa backwards from her scarf, before she dashed against Bermu, a familiar long axe in her hands. Correction, unfamiliar long axe. And, just after seeing that, three shapes joined Bermu Coaltheno. ¡°Agorn Krischa, Vina Tarius and Peril Brahn. Sloth, delusion and knowledge.¡± Velvet explained. ¡°Drifa, go take down Vina.¡± Delusion was the type of Paradigm which, the longer it was around, the more annoying to deal with it was. ¡°Sure.¡± Not doubting Velvet¡¯s order, she changed her target. The drawing of Peril opened his mouth, speaking. ¡°Agorn, cover Vina until she sets up an illusion. Bermu, the prince.¡± Velvet flinched, the uncanny sensation of hearing a drawing speak affecting her. She understood those mages were fake, but the way they moved and behaved was exactly as their real counterparts. She was confident their magic and spells would be the same too. Kartal had two Escas at least, which meant that using spells from mages with less than one open Esca barely had any downside or apparent loss, even when their Paradigms differed from his. Rushing at Vina and Agorn, Drifa raised her axe before reaching them, ready to cut them down. Several root-like plants, bigger and thicker than the ones used by Velvet, protruded from the ground, intending to halt her advance. Drifa scoffed, with enough disdain for the roots, it aaalmost felt personal. Murmuring an enchantment in a low voice, the temperature suddenly dropped. A frozen blizzard, containing sharp chunks of ice, crashed over the plants, destroying and chopping them out. Unlike what it was usually believed, fire magic wasn¡¯t the best thing to deal with plant magic. Why? One may ask. Easy, smoke. Smoke had no friends, and endangered everyone equally. If a mage was surrounded by plants and burned them, they had the big chance of choking to death with the smoke, not to mention the possible burns and the increased difficulty in visibility. And plants could still whack you while burning to death, so there was also that. Now, ice magic was ideal to get rid of plants. It made moving them difficult and destroying them easy. It was clear that Drifa had been training against plant spells after the beating. Which, to Velvet, was great! And, by the way she was fighting, her Paradigm was the same as Igern¡¯s. ¡°Can you raise the dead?¡± Syon asked Skogul, who was lost in thought. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. ¡°Is there dead to raise here? No. And¡­¡± ¡°And?¡± Velvet chimed in. ¡°I don¡¯t want to waste the corpses I have stored in a simulation¡­¡± When both Syon and Velvet stared at him in silence, he quickly added. ¡°Do you have any idea how hard it is to obtain good, useful corpses? Legally?¡± ¡°What about skeletons?¡± Velvet asked. ¡°Apart from looking creepy, human skeletons are extremely weak against mages¡­ Now, if you got me a mage skeleton¡­¡± Are you useless? You¡¯re certainly doing a great job making me want to praise the Death Goddess! Velvet was sure the guy was trying to be mysterious on purpose, but was coming out as lazy instead. Syon nodded, before waving his hand. From his fingertips, sand came out, which went towards Bermu, covering him and halting his charge. Velvet looked to the remaining free mage, Peril, who looked back at her. Peril¡¯s eyes became lines, and started flipping, like book pages turning at extreme speed. An immense train of information flooded Velvet¡¯s brain, producing her a piercing headache. He was trying to collapse her brain by overfilling it! Velvet maintained her gaze with him, grabbing the sides of her head, and responded by sending the full dream formation. Not the thousands of tiny fragments she had sealed in her memory, but the whole thing. Peril screamed, his eye¡¯s veins exploding and blurring his vision with blood. Collapsing on the floor, his skin parted in pages, starting to lose control. ¡°Drifa!¡± Velvet screamed. Not needing to be called twice, the taiga hunter turned instantly, her body becoming an afterimage, axe raised. Slash! Pieces of blood, bone and brain crashed far away from the body, the headless corpse falling to the floor, the signs of losing control stopping. One down. Three to go. Syon and Skogul (who had decided to use several beast skeletons) were dealing with Bermu, who had to be handled with care so as to not become a literal monster. That left Vina and Agorn for them two. Vina had set up a formation, so now there were several Vinas and several Agorns around. Five of each. So at her level, she can only maintain ten illusions, just like I can control ten paper figurines. There was no way to discern real from fake, not from a mage from the Delusion Paradigm. Those looked, felt, smelled and behaved exactly like the real thing. Luckily, neither sloth nor delusion were combat focused Paradigms, so, unlike with Bermu, Velvet could get closer to help Drifa. She looked at the illusions, searching. Each Vina carried a glass ball, while the Agorns moved along, humming a soft melody that was making them sleepy. Using one of the dream awakening charms on her, and another on Drifa, she said. ¡°Get the Vinas, I get the Agorns.¡± Drifa charged against the closest Vina, who reacted by sending the roots. Those weren¡¯t illusions, Vina and Agorn had simply buried seeds around all of them, creating a trap inside a trap. If Vina wasn¡¯t so worried about survival, she would¡¯ve made less human illusions, and more plant illusions, but, as a support Paradigm, she prioritized her survival over potential offense. The opposite of Velvet, who had traded her paper figurine''s ability to recollect information for explosive capabilities. And exploding was what five figurines were doing, close to three Agorns and two Vinas, allowing one Vina to be dispatched by Drifa. A fake one. ¡°Drifa, that one!¡± Velvet pointed to one Vina, who looked shocked. And, once Drifa was almost on top of her¡­ Stab. A wet noise surrounded them, followed by a thud, the illusions disappearing. Which included the one Drifa almost got. One Agorn fell to the ground, a deep wound crossing his back. Velvet, knife in hand, was behind. Noticing Drifa¡¯s stare, she explained. ¡°There were only ten of them. Not twelve. And none of the roots were fake.¡± Slowly, the illusion over the fake Agorn lifted, the ¡®real¡¯ Vina under it. Meeting gazes with the remaining Agorn, who was no longer posing as Vina, Velvet smiled. ¡°And, Agorn, you¡¯re left-handed.¡± Agorn flinched when something touched his feet. Four paper figurines were under him. Boom! ¡°Why didn¡¯t you point me to the real Agorn?¡± Drifa asked, once the smoke disappeared. Velvet had sent her to the Vina furthest away from Agorn, after all. ¡°Oh, I wanted you far away from the explosion. No use blowing you too.¡± Drifa tilted her head, still a bit bothered. She doesn¡¯t like being used or lied to. I¡¯ll keep that in mind. Once Bermu was also out of the picture, they looked at Kartal, who had been chilling back there all the time. ¡°Good, now do eight.¡± With a wave of brush, eight mages were created. Velvet looked horrified. At least let me recover my figurines! ¡­ Three hours later. ¡°Velvet! There¡¯s twenty Vinas! What hand did you say she used?!¡± Drifa screamed at her. ¡°Uh¡­ Right? Wait, where is the right side?¡± Velvet said, her brain mush from all the fighting. ¡°The one you write with.¡± Skogul said. Looking at her hands, the right side unrecognizable, Velvet got even more confused. ¡°The right side is a concept¡­ everything is right if you go left enough.¡± Syon said, filled with philosophy and bruises. ¡°True¡­¡± Velvet said, finding logic with whatever Syon was saying. Chapter 76. Back at the crime scene Not planning on overworking them until uselessness, Kartal called back the drawings, finishing the simulation. He would pressure them a bit more, but, since they barely had time until the start of the Arena, those three hours had to be enough. ¡°You will sleep here tonight. The spare rooms are ready, but you¡¯re free to go out to buy whatever you need for tomorrow. Just make sure to be back before dinner.¡± Velvet agreed with Kartal. She had already been targeted once, so nothing implied Skugol or Drifa wouldn¡¯t also be attacked. Staying together was the safest option. She still wanted to go buy stuff, though. Especially a new container for the fire salamander. It couldn¡¯t stay the whole night alone in the hut, not unless Velvet wanted to go back to a charred home. So, after laying on the floor, resting for a while, she got up, informed Kartal of her parting and left the Riverside Villa. ¡­ Marking the Selection¡¯s end, all the official shops had left the marketplace, and now were inside the Mergifari. Velvet felt the lack of temporary shops, where the more strange and varied items were sold. Well, nothing she could do about that, apart from waiting three years, or exiting the Mergifari. Out of curiosity, she checked the stalls where magic artifacts were sold. Her only artifact was Sinoe¡¯s Baslard, which not only didn¡¯t compliment her Paradigm at all, but could only be used a few days each ten. Artifacts based on formations were useful, but broke easily and had limited uses. Now, the actual high quality ones needed one extra ingredient to be made. A mage body part. Both Sinoe¡¯s Baslard and the whip used by Cornelius, Carni¡¯s Spine, were made with mage parts. Remembering the knowledge mage brain sold by 15000 auris, Velvet kinda expected the artifact shop¡¯s prices to be through the roof. And she was right, but, something worth noting was that, from all artifact shops, only three high tier artifacts were sold. The rest were normal, formation based artifacts. The three artifacts were: a 27000 auris monocle made from a Gluttony Paradigm mage, which allowed the owner to steal anything they looked at, with the downside that anything stolen would appear on the owner¡¯s stomach. A choker with a bell for 20000 auris, from Lust Paradigm. The noise caused anyone to see the owner as the object of their desires. The downsides were, once worn, it had to stay worn for two days. And, lastly, scissors from the Gambling Paradigm for 10000 auris. It allowed the owner to cut good luck, or bad luck streaks, either cursing or blessing someone. Velvet, as someone who had dealt with enough gambling mages for a lifetime, knew the power luck had. The scissors¡¯ downsides, and the reason for its unusual low price, were that it had ¡®consciousness¡¯, and sometimes cut the wrong luck thread, which included the owner¡¯s. In fact, its use accuracy was 40%, 60% if used by someone from the Gambling Paradigm. None of those were useful for Velvet, nor affordable. I wonder if Gertine would sell me Iren Doyle¡¯s remains to make my own¡­ ah, but his brain was stabbed to hell and back. It''s probably useless now. In the end, she simply bought an empty, amphibian container and paper, walking back to the hut to pick up the salamander. And, someone triggered the formation when she was halfway. ¡°You should buy the scissors, and bet on the 40% chance of cutting your bad luck streak.¡± Hyde said. ¡°Haha, and miss on the culprit going back to the crime scene?¡± She hoped the intruder was Agorn. After fighting the drawing the previous hours, she wanted to compare. It was a way of testing if Kartal¡¯s copies resembled the real thing. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. ¡­ Agorn¡¯s orders were simple. Try to hurt Kartal¡¯s knowledge mage as much as possible. Since the wraith failed, his Selector gave him another curse. This time, a full body mirror which, upon being reflected at, allowed the curse to possess the person on the other side, trapping their conscience inside the mirror world. The mage¡¯s friends wouldn¡¯t notice anything, not until the Arena day, where fixing the curse would be impossible. Arriving at Velvet''s hut, he didn¡¯t check for her. There was no need, since he was already informed that she was in Kartal''s Villa. Agorn¡¯s activated his Esca, his surroundings becoming blurry, almost fake. With a step, he crossed the door, not needing to open or unlock it. Taking the container from his clothes, he pulled out a long mirror covered with a black cloth, setting it in front of the locked door. Swish! Agorn removed the black cloth, and let the glass reflect the door, before sighing and exiting through the wall. Doing the same thing two times was such a drag¡­ even more for a sloth mage. Stretching, he went back the way he came. Walking between the trees, his steps didn¡¯t make a sound. Crack. A branch broke close to him. He teleported away from it, planning on running away. The rabbit which caused the noise thought so too, sprinting away after being spooked. Agorn sighed, feeling stupid after being spooked by a rabbit. Bang! A powerful hit slammed his head from behind, smashing him on the ground. As he grabbed his head to protect it, a knee dug into his back, the full body weight behind. ¡°Fuck!¡± He groaned in pain. ¡°Well well well,¡± Velvet said in a cheerful tone, making sure to announce each ¡®well¡¯ as annoyingly as possible. ¡°If it''s the culprit going back to the crime scene. Or, coming back from the crime scene.¡± Agorn flinched. He activated his magic, planning to teleport away from her, to- Snap. His arm broke. After using several strengthening charms to knock him, Velvet had enough strength to do so. ¡°Ah! You fucking bitch!¡± Agorn screamed in pain, cursing at Velvet, his spell interrupted. She laughed, not bothered by the insults. ¡°Now, I don¡¯t appreciate the name calling, but I understand it is a consequence of the situation, and you¡¯re usually more¡­ you.¡± ¡°Buuuut!¡± Agorn felt a paper figurine press against his mouth. ¡°If the next words coming from your lips aren¡¯t answers to my questions, I¡¯ll blow your face up. And you have such a pretty face! It would be a national loss!¡± Of fucking course the fucking mage fucking Kartal picked is fucking insane. Part because of the awful pain he was in, and part the ¡®cute¡¯ tone Velvet¡¯s threats were issued with, Agorn felt even more endangered. ¡°Are you listening? Is not nice to ignore a girl when she is on top of you.¡± She pressed on the broken arm, feeling no pity for Agorn. He had tried to kill her two times now, and Velvet wasn¡¯t one that forgave such transgressions. But, killing on the Mergifari meant paying a fine, so she had to leave Agorn alive. ¡°Stop! I¡¯m listening dammit!¡± ¡°Great! Ssssooo¡­¡± She dragged the word, searching in Agorn¡¯s pockets. ¡°What beautiful, gorgeous present did you leave for me?¡± ¡°A cursed mirror¡­ is that my wallet? Ugh!¡± Velvet pressed his arm again, making clear that she wanted to know about the mirror, not about what she obviously was doing. ¡°Looking at it will take your consciousness inside-¡± ¡°You only carry 3345 auris? Oof.¡± Velvet interrupted, pocketing all the money, before starting to remove Agorn¡¯s bracelet container. Thanks to you, now it¡¯s zero. He grit his teeth, preferring his face and wellbeing over material properties. ¡°And a doppelganger will take your plac-¡± ¡°Oh, what is this fluffy thing?! It¡¯s sooo cute!¡± Ignoring Agorn¡¯s hateful glare, she pocketed a stash of dream charms, delighted. ¡°Oh, I was running out of these, thank you!¡± Velvet also picked the black cloth used to cover the mirror. After not finding anything else, she sighed. ¡°It''s so sad I don¡¯t have any sloth mages as friends¡­ I want to eat your demon¡­¡± The first sentence sent a chill down Agorn¡¯s spine, but it was the next one which truly terrified him. ¡°Oh, but the saddest thing is that I cannot use you to make artifacts¡­ Why are some mages so lucky?¡± Velvet sighed deeply, before recovering her cheerful tone. ¡°Anyway! I just have to make sure you cannot participate in tomorrow''s Arena! So, Udulluay, please tell me when I should stop before breaking a rule!¡± The flutter sound of wings startled Agorn. ¡°You can¡¯t do anything that cannot be healed with time.¡± ¡°Okay!¡± ¡­ Once back to the Riverside Villa, Velvet went to the dining room, where the others were waiting. ¡°I was going to look for you.¡± Kartal said, looking at Velvet. ¡°Well, you should be glad. Agorn Krischa won¡¯t be joining the Arena tomorrow. And¡­¡± ¡°And?¡± Skugol asked. ¡°Do you wanna see a cursed mirror?¡± Chapter 77. Four rings The dinner consisted of roasted lamb, with peas, potatoes and carrots. The spice smell filled the room, and Velvet made sure to enjoy the free food as much as she could, to the point where she also ate part of Skugol¡¯s plate. Hey now, the guy was basically dead, so it was fine. Once they finished eating, Kartal brought four rings. Golden in color, with intricate details and a thin golden chain that wrapped around the wrist, ending in a golden triangle, coupled with a translucent jewel on top of the ring. One was different, with three translucent jewels instead of one. ¡°This is a blood locator. The starting point of each mage is random, so, to make sure you can group together as fast as possible, you¡¯ll be using these.¡± Kartal picked the three rings that had one jewel. ¡°Syon, your hand.¡± Obediently, Syon took off his glove and raised his left hand. Kartal pressed the jewel against his palm. Velvet saw Syon grimacing for an instant, the jewel now tainted red. Kartal repeated the same thing two times, before picking the ring with three jewels. ¡°Your turn now.¡± Blood was dangerous in the mage world. It was one of the fastest ways to curse or track someone, and mages were recommended to keep in check where the blood they lost went. Of course, several spells existed to remove or burn blood traces, since a mage could use their own blood to track the lost blood, and ¡®curse¡¯ it before anyone else did. Those rings were probably used to reassure Kartal that the removed blood could not be used for anything else, even if they ended in the wrong hands. And she was second, dammit. Pressing her finger against one of the jewels, a sharp, piercing pain stabbed it. She bit her tongue to not make any noise (Syon hadn¡¯t complained after being pierced three times, and he was more delicate than Velvet, making her competitive), until the jewel had been completely tainted red. When she was over, it was Drifa¡¯s turn, on the middle one. As a frontline mage, she barely reacted to the pain, making two the number of red jewels. Skogul was last. He also didn¡¯t react much, but his jewel took the longest time to change color, becoming a dark red, almost black. Once the principal ring was done, Kartal gave it to Syon, who started tinkering with it. He also started distributing the other three. Click. One of the jewels came out. Well, actually, Syon plucked it out. Kartal glared at him, making clear he wasn¡¯t supposed to do that. Click. He pulled out another. And then swapped their positions, making Skugol¡¯s black jewel the middle one. ¡°Syon¡­¡± Kartal sighed, but, upon receiving only a clueless look as answer from the Second Prince, he gave up. And, slowly and stealthy, Velvet, Drifa and Skugol either lowered a weapon, stopped a blood burning spell or stopped trying to get into Syon¡¯s blood gem. This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. Once his ring was symmetrical, he put it on, fixing the chain around his wrist. The others did the same, testing the artifact¡¯s accuracy. All three chain¡¯s endings worked as a pendulum, pointing to Syon, signaling it worked perfectly. ¡°Don¡¯t remove the ring, or the jewel will self-destruct. You can also detonate it with a single thought, in case you fall in a trap and get captured.¡± Fixing his clothes, Kartal ordered the staff to start cleaning the table. ¡°Any more questions?¡± Kartal¡¯s staff consisted of figures dressed in white, long skirt maid clothes, with their faces covered by silk cloth. Every maid looked the same as the others, which made Velvet assume they were made with Kartal¡¯s magic. She didn¡¯t ask, anyway. Part of her was considering Kartal to be of the Delusion Paradigm, obtaining the ability of making illusions real once opening the second Esca. I wonder what a second Knowledge Esca would do. Maybe it will allow me to understand any spell I lay my eyes upon¡­ but that sounds kinda basic. Stopping her daydreaming, Velvet gave a negative answer to Kartal, going to her room to purify herself and sleep. Waiting for the bathtub to fill, she checked on her new pets. The fluffy thing she had seen at first was a drowsy fox, sleeping peacefully. From the Dreamer Paradigm, its dreams could be used to power charms. Unfortunately, Velvet wasn¡¯t a lucid dreamer, at least not outside the chained man¡¯s place, so she was unable to harvest dreams. It could be sold for 100 auris, so there was that. She could even resold it to Agorn, were he able to pay. The next container had a bunch of multiplying rabbits. The fox¡¯s food source. They had no other uses, apart from being cute, fluffy and popping kids like once a week. Next. A nighthare. Looking like a possessed, elongated, traumatized rabbit, greenish grayish in color, with long hair, fed on dreams (Agorn was feeding it with the cloud rabbits dreams, but Velvet changed it to consume the fox¡¯s dreams. One, for science, and two, she couldn¡¯t harvest the fox''s dreams herself anyway), the hare from the Lust Paradigm looked at her, standing on two legs, and she could feel that it was delighted for the food change. She could harvest the moss and small mushrooms growing on its long hair, making some homemade ink for charms. Velvet still had the lust spells and seeds, after all. And the best thing? The nighthare was worth 5000 auris. It was a very expensive, high quality pet. Agorn had three foxes in total, two rabbit containers, one empty with the cursed mirror and the hare. The three foxes will make feeding the hare with fox¡¯s dreams very easy and safe. Velvet hummed, interested in her experiment. The rabbit addition allowed her to buy carnivores in the future, no longer limited to insectivores. Stopping recounting her spoils, Velvet went to take a bath, cleaned her body of miasma, and went to bed. Tomorrow was going to be intense, so she wasn¡¯t planning on testing anything. ¡­ When she didn¡¯t find herself surrounded by darkness, Velvet cursed Lothrigern in silence. Instead, she found herself in a temple. White marble pillars covered by ivy surrounded a god¡¯s altar, the cold stone floor caressing her feet. There was no ceiling, letting the natural light fill the surroundings. She was barefoot, with several thin, golden anklets as jewelry. A plain, simple dress, wasted white in color, from an epoch she couldn¡¯t pinpoint, probably ancient was her only attire. Velvet walked to the altar. Food, gold, exquisite clothes, wine¡­ She didn¡¯t touch any of it. It wasn¡¯t for her, after all. A colossal statue was behind the offerings. Depicted was an old man, with a long beard and four closed eyes, sitting cross-legged, scepter in hand and crown in head. Velvet looked at the scepter, trying to see if she could find the formation, but the sound of someone rushing to her position put her on alert. ¡°Grand Priestess! Divine Priestess!¡± A bald man entered the altar, instantly falling to his knees in front of Velvet, knocking his head against the stone floor, using enough force to start splashing the floor red. ¡°There¡¯s been a revelation! There¡¯s been a revelation!¡± Velvet was going to stop the idiot from killing himself, but he looked up towards her. Between the blood and broken nose, his face was filled with tears and despair. ¡°Solaros is dead. Nimargio is dead. Frouga is dead. Our god is dying too.¡± A cracking noise behind Velvet caught her attention. The god¡¯s statue was falling apart. ¡°Why?!¡± The man asked. ¡°What sins did we commit?!¡± He slammed his head against the stone again and again, chanting why. Velvet felt her mouth open against her will, as if the Priestess she was replacing wanted to say something. ¡°We didn¡¯t do anything. This is the gods¡¯ sin, a sin that can only be paid with blood.¡± She looked up to the red sky. The sky was falling. The man¡¯s skin started spurting ulcers, the charring smell of meat coming from his body. Just like Velvet¡¯s. She looked at her hands, the meat was falling down, like candle wax, showing the bone underneath. Something slammed the ground far away. A colossal figure, bigger than the temple itself. An old bearded man, with four open eyes devoid of life. The lower half of his body was nowhere to be seen. Chapter 78. Ready, set Velvet woke up, the feeling of dread not stopping pressuring her chest. Rolling out of bed, she went to the bathroom to clean her face. She didn¡¯t feel like falling asleep again. Walking down the hallways, she searched for a balcony to go and get fresh air. It was past midnight, around two o¡¯clock, and all the lights were out, the only illumination being the fake stars on the villa¡¯s pocket dimension. Even if they were fake, they were an exact copy of the ones outside, proof of the amazing craftsmanship used in the formation. Finally seeing a balcony, Velvet noticed a gas lamp was lit, and someone was also awake. Irsen Kartal was sitting on a foldable chair outside. A table was set next to him, with a half filled glass and a bottle of whisky. He moved his head slightly when Velvet got closer to the balcony, but turned it back once she dragged another folding chair and sat on the opposite side of the table. They stared at the night sky in silence, with only the chirping of the still awake birds as background noise. Until Velvet rummaged through the table¡¯s drawer, pulling out an empty glass, setting it on the table and grabbing the bottle. ¡°Fill no more than a finger. It¡¯s hard liquor.¡± Kartal told her. Velvet did as told, taking a sip. A burning, itching sensation overwhelmed her throat, as she grimaced, resisting the need to cough, before raising the glass and downing the vase¡¯s contents whole. She didn¡¯t refill it. Kartal waited until Velvet finally coughed, and let out a short laugh, drinking from his vase. ¡°Aren¡¯t most Charlampians sailors?¡± ¡°Yes, but I¡¯m a mage, not a sailor.¡± She defended herself. Thinking about Gertine¡¯s habits, though, it was a weak defense. ¡°A mage that should be sleeping.¡± ¡°This mage is having sleeping problems.¡± Kartal folded his hands over his legs. Velvet had crossed paths with a sloth mage, Agorn. Even if she had won, nothing implied he didn¡¯t manage to do anything. ¡°As in?¡± ¡°Lucid dreaming. Of ancient events.¡± She didn¡¯t need to keep that a secret. The actual dream contents, yes, but the fact that she could lucid dream, no. It was hardly a unique skill. All sloth and sloth-adjacent mages could do it, and anyone could develop the skill with time. Even normal humans. Kartal relaxed. It wasn¡¯t a curse. Velvet choosed to change the conversation, testing if she could confirm her deductions. ¡°Are those drawings from the Delusion Paradigm? Or the Remembrance?¡± The drawing''s main attribute was the perfect imitation of powers and personality of the originals. Velvet wouldn¡¯t have been able to ambush Agorn with such perfection without having dealt with the copies previously. That made her previous guess of Delusion Paradigm tremble. Slowly, Kartal took a sip of liquor. ¡°Both. You guessed right.¡± ¡°How did you get two different Escas?¡± Something like that shouldn¡¯t be possible. Escas filled the whole soul. Once a mage picked a Paradigm, that was it. ¡°A mage¡¯s experiment. Luckily for me, I survived. Unluckily for him, I survived.¡± Kartal didn¡¯t give more details. He had no reason to keep that a secret for Velvet. That girl was like a curious mouse. Even if he didn¡¯t answer her, she would eventually come across some mage grimoire or experimental logs, arriving at the truth on her own. The Mergifari was filled with those things to the brim. But, by being the one telling her, he had some bait to keep her entertained, and, most importantly, it reinforced her trust in him. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. And, if she once wanted to experiment, her trust in him would make her pick mages dangerous for humans as test subjects. Seeing Velvet pondering over his words, Kartal sighed. ¡°Go back to bed. If you have strange dreams after this, I¡¯ll give you some pills.¡± I don¡¯t think pills are going to help me¡­ Even then, Velvet obeyed, dragging the chair back to where it was, before going back to her room. Falling asleep once again, this time to the now relaxing all-surrounding darkness, without any visions. ¡­ Today was the day of the Arena. All of them were up already, readying their stuff. The table was filled with materials, half done charms, potions, seeds¡­ Several corpses were standing in line, controlled by Skugol, while Velvet was tinkering with them, putting charms inside. ¡°This one carries fastening and sleep charms.¡± Sewing the holes she made to stuff the charms with the black thread Skugol gave her, she gave this corpse for finished. ¡°Three dream corpses done. Now I¡¯ll make some lust ones.¡± ¡°Using corpse and lust in the same sentence feels atrocious¡­¡± Skogul said from behind an alchemy set, busy grinding several ingredients into powder, before slowly mixing them inside a boiling liquid. ¡°But make those five, they are the slowest.¡± Five corpses took a step forward, while the already finished took a step back, making a group on the other side. Skugol possessed a total of twenty corpses, and Velvet had enhanced twelve already. She had also given Drifa a variety of charms, same with Syon, and had obtained potions, several containers filled with blocks of ice, a sand golem, a pair of earrings and an umbrella from Syon. The earrings had two effects, one for each piece. The left one made her body light as a feather, while the right one heavy as a statue. They didn¡¯t make her body more resistant, so dive bombing at people and crushing them still wasn¡¯t an option. The umbrella resisted projectile type spells. Using Sinoe¡¯s Baslard to make deep but small cuts on the corpses, putting seeds and lust charms inside them and sewing, Velvet finished that set of corpses. ¡°Three remaining. What do we lack?¡± She asked, partly to herself, partly to the others. ¡°Reconnaissance spells. But corpses don¡¯t have smell nor sight, so we will have to do without those.¡± ¡°Mhm.¡± Velvet nodded, inspecting the remaining corpses, trying to see something they didn¡¯t do already. ¡°Lesse¡­ I made potions for cold resist, heat resist, mind control resist, poison cleaning aaand¡­¡± Skugol finished filling twelve long, thin glass vials. ¡°Underwater breathing. Four for each, don¡¯t fight over them.¡± He got close to Velvet, handling her the corresponding number of vials. ¡°What if we made them look like Syon?¡± She giggled. ¡°Oh, that sounds hilarious. Syon, Syon, come here, we¡¯re gonna impersonate you.¡± Syon grimaced. It was clear he didn¡¯t like the corpse''s smell, and didn¡¯t want to get next to them, but he didn¡¯t really have a choice. Velvet and Skugol started working, their attention going from the corpse to Syon. ¡°The chin is wrong¡­ and the eyes¡­¡± ¡°Skugol, put the nose back in place!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t blame me, Syon, stop covering your nose! These corpses were frozen until minutes ago, they still don¡¯t smell!¡± ¡°Pfft! Look, Syon, I¡¯ve got your eye.¡± ¡°Haha¡­ no, stop, put it back inside.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t, it keeps falling, hehe. Drifa, throw me some eye sized seed.¡± ¡°Look, Syon, salute your twin cousin, Noys!¡± ¡°Twins cannot be¡­ Why is he lacking an ear?¡± ¡°Why is he lacking an ear¡­ oh shit. Skugol!¡± ¡°Ah, it must¡¯ve fallen on the container¡­ here it is.¡± The noise of Kartal clearing his throat stopped their artistic endeavors. ¡°The Arena starts in ten minutes.¡± ¡°Will they notice the half-assed Syons?¡± ¡°Just put a cloak over them and they¡¯ll be ready for storing¡­ Why do they look like they are suffering?¡± Skugol muttered, and started putting back the corpses in containers, while Velvet went to pick some materials that could be used but weren¡¯t needed for now. Drifa and Syon were already ready to leave, and soon, Skugol and Velvet joined them. ¡­ They arrived at the Selection Room together. Now, it¡¯s function wasn¡¯t the Selection, but the Opening. In the middle of the space where the novice mages had previously showcased their abilities and picked a Selector, now there was a formation. Five metronomes were positioned in a circle, ticking in succession. With each tick, the swirling combination of dust and light reflected different places. The ticks were fast, which made staring at the constantly changing portals a headache. Behind each metronome, a mage was standing. Velvet recognized the Director, Hasdrubal and the Queen of Arhontissa. She looked to the side, where Ceres was sitting. Their gazes met, and he smiled at her, laying back on his seat. Ceres really intends to give me free reign. Good. Taking a deep breath, Velvet fixed her hat, as the novice mages entered the portal one by one. And soon, it was her turn. Chapter 79. The Opening Everyone was dead. Everyone who hadn¡¯t gone out before hell opened, was dead. Everyone except him, who couldn¡¯t die. Dianthus looked at his hands. Bloodstained, filled with cuts and bruises who were slowly healing. Knock, knock. He wasn¡¯t able to stop it, nor stall it enough for help to arrive. The devil was simply too strong. Too strong for him, too strong for everyone. Click. Who could mess up so badly? Who- ¡°AH!¡± Dianthus woke up suddenly, screaming. A sharp pain had pierced his stomach, all the way across. He reacted fast, grabbing the weapon¡¯s handle before Igern fully nailed him to his bed. Once he felt resistance, Igern removed his hand from the lance. ¡°The Opening starts in half an hour.¡± He said, as he left his room, going downstairs. You didn¡¯t even bother to pull out the weapon¡­ ¡°You fucking asshole¡­¡± Dianthus complained, slowly pulling the ice spear out. At least he hadn¡¯t pierced his spine. Igern was one of the mages who were going to die today. Not one of the firsts, the guy was too stubborn to even die fast. And his death wasn¡¯t even noble, fighting to protect someone. No. He fought the devil, he lost, he died. Dianthus finally got up from bed, going to the bathroom. As gruesome as prophecies were, they still didn¡¯t prevent certain needs. After using the toilet, he cleaned his hands, face and blood remains, dressed up and went downstairs with the rest. All of them were already up, and had been up for hours, getting ready. He was the last one to arrive. Dianthus had even managed to oversleep Nereus. One does not simply wake up during a prophecy. Unless Igern is close, of course. Thinking of the guy, he had gone back to his seat, and was enchanting an ice blade. He didn¡¯t even raise his head to look at him. Another future corpse, Creftalia, spoke, pushing a box towards him. ¡°Your things. I¡¯ve put several charms inside¡­¡± How did she even die? Her death was too fast, Dianthus didn¡¯t even remember it. ¡°And here are Nereus¡¯.¡± She pushed another box towards the guy, who raised his head from the table, glared at the box with suspicion, and put his head back down. Someone is a bad morning person. Nereus also died. Dianthus remembers his corpse among the others, but he didn¡¯t see how. Every Queen¡¯s Selected died except him. The consequences of being the strongest team. They lasted too much and lost the opportunity to escape. All the strongest novice mages would die today, while the weak, cowardly ones would survive. That was what the prophecy announced. Now, Dianthus thought, how do I change this? He had a plan, one involving something he had been warned not to poke. ¡­ If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. After having breakfast, a rushed breakfast, since Winter kept on hurrying him, Dianthus and company entered the Selection room. The portal was open, and the mages were entering already. The Queen was there, in one of the formation points, but she didn¡¯t acknowledge their presence, busy with keeping the portal going. Once all the mages were in, she would close the portal and rest, but not now. Oh, there she is. Dianthus found his target. The last survivor. The last escapee. The last mage who managed to escape the pocket dimension, before it became impossible. Velvet was the name. In Dianthus'' memories, she had separated from her group to bait Igern, after crossing paths with his team and getting in trouble. It was normal, Igern was the strongest mage after him, and he alone could take on whatever ragtag team he wanted. Even so, Velvet was just running away, she wasn¡¯t so stupid to fight him head-on. Her plan amounted to: One: Use herself as a bait to separate Igern from his group, so that her group could deal with Creftalia. Igern wanted to defeat Velvet as some petty revenge, so he fell for such bait extremely easily. Cons of being too strong, you get arrogant with time. Two: Use any means to get away from Igern. Also doable, Igern was a combat mage, not a tracking mage. Now, why was she the last survivor? Because she got ¡®unfairly¡¯ kicked out. The reasons in which a mage could consider to have lost, getting expelled from the pocket dimension were this ones: Getting knocked out, hard to do in combat, but several mages simply took vials of poison with them, drank them, fell unconscious and lost instantly. The coward¡¯s way out. Having received a wound that could cause long lasting damage or death. The common way out for mages who were willing to participate. Crossing the safe threshold of miasma accumulation. If a mage started giving signs of losing control, they were out. This was the Opening, not a battle to the death. Even when it was going to become a massacre in a few hours. Back to the point. Igern wouldn¡¯t manage to push Velvet into any of the previous categories. But, he did manage to harm her once. Not a life threatening wound, just a plain cut. And still, that was enough to kick her out from the Opening. Just seconds before it became impossible to get out. Why? Well, in the why, no, in the who, did lay Dianthus¡¯ plan to change the prophecy. And who used some papercut excuse to kick Velvet out from a certain death? The one who had her marked, of course. Dianthus'' plan was easy to follow. Wait for Igern to chase Velvet, swoop in to save her, and ruin Lothrigern¡¯s plan, so that He had to do something. It sounded perfect, easy to do, and he could test if the warnings about Lothrigern had some real weight. He just had to wait for the perfect moment. ¡­ Ignorant of someone¡¯s plights that certainly didn¡¯t involve her, Velvet entered the portal. After a few seconds of dizziness and multicolored lights which forced her to close her eyes, she found herself next to a tree at the verge of a cliff. In that position, she could admire the immensity of the pocket dimension, together with the variety of zones. Scorching, volcanic zones, mazes with stone crafted roses, a forest so dense she could only see the tree¡¯s tips, a river deep down the cliff, a desert in the middle of a sandstorm, a small, dense and liveless city, a frozen lake¡­ Each zone had a size around three square kilometers, in hexagonal shape, which mixed seamlessly with the next, like a puzzle with blurred edges. With so much variety, no mage could complain that they were dropped in an disadvantageous terrain. They could just walk to their preferred place. Velvet waited. She, Drifa and Skugol entered first, so, once Syon entered, they all could move instantly, reducing the time he was alone. She checked the ring. Nothing yet. Mages appeared separated from each other for at least one kilometer, even if they were moving, so ambushing someone who just entered wasn¡¯t possible. Ten seconds passed. She checked again. There. Syon was in the city, moving west. She wasn¡¯t that far away. Once he entered the pocket dimension, Syon would go to the middle zone between the three, unless he was almost next to one of them. I can join him in the forest. Velvet decided, before jumping from the cliff. Using the earring, she reduced her body weight, and floated down to the river. Before touching the water, she pulled out the umbrella, pointing down. She opened it; using the handle as a helm, and the canopy as a hull, she now had a makeshift boat. The river waters moved fast, and, the best thing, they went towards the forest. So for now, she was getting Syon. Chapter 80. 126 Going down the river, Velvet paid special attention to the things over her head: the treetops, the glass windows of the empty buildings, or simply mages flying with a broom. She could be ambushed by the sides, yes, but the river made her move around too much, which would hinder any surprise attack from those places. But upside was a bit trickier to control, the reason why she kept looking to those places. Swish! The sudden movement behind a window proved her point, when several long snakes downed on her. Velvet jumped, pulling the umbrella from under her, replacing it for a block of ice. She blocked the snakes with the umbrella, and made two paper figurines jump to the window where the enemy was, exploding. The snakes reacted by coiling their bodies around the enemy mage, protecting them from the explosions. Velvet used that moment to pull out a broom, flying away at top speed. The enemy mage made a tsk sound, but didn¡¯t give chase, choosing to leave and abandon the ambushing position for another. That was the modus operandi of single mages. Either ambush or be ambushed, but resolve the fight quickly or run away, before a stronger mage or a team showed up to pick twice the spoils. And soon enough, not even two minutes had passed before a stone box, adorned with intricate motifs and a heavy stone door grew from the walls of a building. The door opened, and three mages stepped out. Unfortunately for them, the mages who collided had already left. ¡­ Velvet had no intention of stopping to fight, at least not until she teamed up with the others. Knowing when to refuse a combat was part of being a mage, and running away didn¡¯t carry a penalty in the Arena. The only thing that mattered were the mages who lasted until the end. From the 156 novice mages accepted this year, only the top 30 would enjoy monthly benefits from the Mergifari, even more the top 10. When one was a mage worth nurturing, offers, friendship and secret information came on their own. Velvet was somewhat interested in the archives who could only be accessed for official mages, or high ranking novices. In short, depending on which position a novice mage held after the Opening Arena, a tier would be assigned to them. From 1 to 10: Top Tier mages, the ones more worth nurturing. From 11 to 30: High Tier mages, the best after the best. From 31 to 50: Middle Tier mages, it was a good rating, but, from this point on, there were no benefits from the Mergifari. After position number 51, the mage was already Low Tier, or average. They still managed to enter the Mergifari, so there was that. Every year there was another Arena to reassign positions. That¡¯s why Velvet''s original plan involved being Low Tier for the first year, before trying to increase her tier in the next. As a knowledge mage, having a full year to know her fellow mages before confronting them was better than going blindly the first time. Better as in: having actual chances. But Kartal and Syon threw that plan down the drain. Oh, well. Kartal wanted Syon at least in High Tier, so they had to hold until 126 mages were out. 126¡­ Velvet repeated the number in her mind, making a gloomy expression. It was a number too big when talking about mages. And, fifteen of those mages were really out to harm Syon. Fourteen, actually. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. She arrived at the city¡¯s zone end, and finally entered the forest. ¡­ Silva ran through the stone maze. His partner was close, just around the corner. There. He had found her. ¡°Hert.¡± He called. The girl was looking around a corner opposite from him, slightly jumping when he said her name. ¡°Shh!¡± She ordered, making a panicked face. ¡°A strong mage is around!¡± Taking a few steps backwards, she got away from the corner. Walking towards her, he pressured. ¡°Who? Igern? Dianthus?¡± He tilted his head, trying to remember any other dangerous mage. ¡°The Siberetti?¡± Once he was just behind her, Hert turned to face him. ¡°Does it matter?¡± Her face cracked, all the way until the back of her head. Snap. Silva tried to take a step back. Too slowly. Too late. Hert¡¯s head cracked open like an egg, an enormous number of root-like vines exploding towards him, grabbing and coiling around his face, arms, legs and neck, choking him. He tried to resist futilely, but the ¡®fight¡¯ was over before it began. He had fallen into a trap, completely. His vision went dark, and he exited the Arena. ¡®Hert¡¯ raised her hands, grabbed the parted pieces of her head, and closed it like a box. The vines went back inside, making bulging, slithering protrusions under the face¡¯s skin. ¡®Hert¡¯ was slowly changing, getting taller. The hand that held the head lowered, pulling a pocket mirror out, and went back to reflect the face. With care, Gertine caressed the still moving worm-like protrusions, leveling and calming them. Then, she went back to the corner she was peeking from before. There, on the other side of the maze, a mage was tied up by vines. Gertine ordered the plants, who choked the mage until she was too, like her companion, out. Even if she was a lust mage, her family was mostly from the Knowledge Paradigm. They knew which mages had teamed up in groups of two, and which were easier to take out using the companion as bait. Mages who were teamed up with their romantic partner or with a deep friend were the easiest, even more when she, a lust mage, affected their emotions with just her presence. Her Paradigm made mages more desirous, as if she put pink tinted glasses over their eyes. And, like with pink tinted glasses, any red flag became just a flag. Gertine closed the pocket mirror, putting it on her pocket, before sighing. ¡°I can sense you.¡± She spoke to the air. Steps came from around the corner, before another mage walked out. Hm¡­ Gertine went over the list of participants. She wasn¡¯t a knowledge mage, so she had to use artifacts and spells for memorizing stuff. ¡°Drifa Kroschei. Tyranny Paradigm, from Idir¡¯s Second Prince¡¯s Team.¡± She said, smiling softly when Drifa tensed upon hearing it, stopping in her tracks. ¡°Those vines¡­ were you at the Market Arena?¡± She asked. She had seen how those vines dealt with the mages, and she remembered losing in a similar manner. ¡°I don¡¯t go to those places.¡± Gertine answered. Still, she was an ambush mage, not a fighting mage, and she wanted to prevent having to fight Drifa. The reason? She would lose. ¡°You¡¯re Velvet¡¯s teammate, aren¡¯t you?¡± ¡°How do you kn-¡± ¡°We are friends.¡± Gertine said, smiling in a mysterious manner, as if they had some strange relationship, and she was using ¡®friends¡¯ as a placeholder. ¡°Tell her Gertine sends her regards.¡± She then turned around and left with confidence, not looking back. She was putting all her trust in Velvet¡¯s place on that team, and in the idea that her cryptic way of speaking had created an enigmatic figure in Drifa¡¯s mind, making her subconsciously refuse to confront her. And it worked! Gertine sensed Drifa staying in place for a minute, before shaking her head and leaving in another direction. She let out a deep breath, her ¡®enigmatic¡¯ smile disappearing. That was a close call. She thought. If the mage she had crossed wasn¡¯t Drifa, but someone else instead, she would have ended up in a losing fight. I will have to show my gratitude to Velvet after this. Maybe some dried flowers for decorating her hat would do the trick. Gertine left the mazes. She shouldn¡¯t linger in the same spot too much time, unless she wanted to become the prey. Unknown to her, just as she left, someone else entered from the opposite side. Bermu Coaltheno, followed by Vina Tarius, two of the mages tasked with hunting Syon. They looked at the stone path. ¡°Is this the center?¡± Bermu asked. ¡°No, but it''s close.¡± Vina walked ten steps into the maze, ¡°Here. This is the center.¡± Bermu followed her, and, once she stopped, he laid against a wall. ¡°Hm.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t ¡®hm¡¯ me. Help me set up the altar while the others arrive.¡± ¡°Hm.¡± ¡°Are you even listening to me?¡± Chapter 81. Sand snake Velvet didn¡¯t get involved in any more mishaps before locating Syon, who was at the forest¡¯s edge, already with Skogul. Huh, so we weren¡¯t that far away from each other. ¡°Did you cross any of the fourteen oppositors?¡± She asked upon arriving, dusting off her dress. ¡°No, I did not.¡± Syon answered nonchalantly. I wasn¡¯t asking you¡­ Obviously you didn¡¯t cross any! If you had done so, all our preparations would¡¯ve been for nothing! ¡°Nothing from my side.¡± Skogul said. ¡°Drifa is still further away. We have to go get her.¡± ¡°She keeps stopping randomly.¡± That was Syon''s nice way of saying she kept fighting stray mages. Good to see one of them was working hard! Velvet nodded, before they started moving. Not straight towards Drifa, since that would make being ambushed a possibility, even more in the case they were being followed or tracked. It was fourteen versus four, and their advantage was the ease in which four mages could team up, instead of fourteen. Drifa was in the basalt columns zone. Close to the volcanic zone, basalt formations, hexagonal in shape, grew in a 45o angle from the floor. The columns were big enough to work like a tilted stairway: sometimes going up, sometimes going down, left, right, inside a hole¡­ A slippery, trippable, impossible to run in stairway. So Velvet used the broom, not wanting to deal with them. Why didn''t Drifa pick an easier path, dammit? Like the active volcano, for example. ¡­ They heard Drifa before seeing her. And she didn¡¯t mean the clanking noise of metal against rocks. ¡°You son of a bitch! Once I get you I¡¯m going to shove this axe up your-¡± Now, that was the Drifa Velvet remembered from the Arena! Glad to see she¡¯s having fun! The girl in question was chasing another mage, one who kept jumping from column to column. Looking at the destruction around the place, they had been at this for a while. Raising her left hand, Drifa started to chant, "Ode for the frozen, drenching of calamity." The air rumbled, with several gray clouds swirling over them, cracking. Sharp, pointy structures peeked from them, every single one translucent like glass. As she lowered her hand, the ice spears rained down. The enemy mage joined his palms, putting one hand over the other, with the right thumb kissing the left little finger. ¡°This too shall pass.¡± Separating his hands, an aura surrounded his body, draining everything it touched from color. The air, the rocks and his clothes became gray, a stillness dawning over him. The ice spears lost their shine upon entering, crossing the mage without harming him, going into the basalt columns without shattering them, disappearing below the ground. ¡°Tsch.¡± Drifa spat, baring her teeth. Apathy Paradigm. Velvet felt the pull of a Paradigm adjacent to her own, which allowed her to recognize it, even when she had never met an apathy mage before. A bald man, probably around his forties, dressed in a long robe with wide sleeves. But what caught Velvet¡¯s attention were his eyes. They were made by vertical lines, in different tones of white, who constantly moved up. Even when he tilted his head, the lines always went up. Not all novice mages were young. The majority of them were, of course, but there was a minority who was older. Usually mages who first wandered around before entering the Mergifari, or mages from families who weren¡¯t affiliated with them, and couldn¡¯t or didn¡¯t want to pay the price for entering. You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. The mage looked like a Paraiso native, so the chances of belonging to an unaffiliated family were low. Mages from Paraiso never left Paraiso. Velvet didn¡¯t know the reason, like almost everyone from other continents, the knowledge of what actually was behind the wall of light was a mystery. Both him and Drifa noticed them. Drifa looked at Velvet. Once their gazes met, she stuck the ground using her axe like a staff. "Gertine sends her regards." She said. Velvet looked at her in silence, blinking slowly. Eh? What does that have to do with anything? Ah. Of course. She realized soon. Gertine probably encountered Drifa, got scared shitless, and used the fact that Velvet was her companion as a scapegoat. Hehe, am I that famous? Chuckling to herself in silence, she nodded to Drifa. The taiga hunter could carry a grudge for a long time, so Velvet played along with Gertine''s mysterious persona, not planning to give Drifa any reason to hunt Gertine later, at least for this reason, and instead giving her an enigmatic smile. "Ah, is that so? Guess I''ll have to pay her a visit after this job." Gertine, my beloved friend, once Drifa discovers I was the one who defeated her that day, she is gonna take us both down together. Glad to share the sinking ship with you. Drifa mimicked her nod, believing something was between them. Conversations over, they turned to the apathy mage. As if the situation didn¡¯t matter to him, he hadn¡¯t moved, nor tried anything. And, even when they had no enmity with him, all of them were inside an Arena, and thus, doomed to fight. They had to prove Syon was fit as a ruler to a military nation. As a test, Velvet sent one of her figurines towards the mage, but, once it entered the decolored area, her connection to it got cut, and the figurine plopped down uselessly. What would happen if a person entered? She pondered. Even when they outnumbered the mage, none of them made any moves to get closer. Even Drifa, who had been chasing him before, chose to squint at him instead of attacking. Clearly, seeing her Ice Spear Rain fail miserably made her reconsider. There wasn¡¯t much information about the Apathy Paradigm. It was hard to obtain, the practitioners could be counted with one hand, and the most important mages from it tended to disappear with time, with no one to explain, or care to find out their destination. One of its names was the Lost Paradigm, because a mage had to be truly lost in life to obtain it. The only good thing Velvet could say to know about it, was that apathy mages never lost control. And after saying that, she could argue that the mage looked more lifeless than Skogul, and he was dead. Syon extended his hand, and blew on it. A tiny blow, and yet, a dense, snake-like sand formation, never-ending in length came out, coiling around the gray area, slowly sealing it shut. The snake kept on coiling over itself, every spin faster than the previous one. ¡°This too shall pass.¡± Syon repeated the mage¡¯s previous words. ¡°But can you stand still until it does?¡± ¡°He cannot move using the spell¡­¡± Velvet realized, feeling stupid. It was obvious! Although the area surrounding the mage negated any attack, it could only be maintained as long as the mage ¡®ignored¡¯ his situation. Syon wanted to take all the area¡¯s oxygen, sealing first the zone shut and then grinding to ¡®steal¡¯ the available air. He must¡¯ve dealt with apathy mages previously. I would¡¯ve simply ran away once I realized I couldn¡¯t harm him¡­ not like I could seal the area anyway. Velvet saw Drifa chanting again, intending to stab the mage the same moment he exited. Seconds passed, with only the noise of the grinding sand and the cracking ice being heard. Then, a loud bang came from inside the snake, exploding it¡¯s side, scattering the sand around in million particles. Ice spears rained down instantly, all directed to the hole. The apathy mage, now visible, raised his hand towards the falling spears, pointing a three-cannon shotgun against them. Bang! He shot again, this time, the noise wasn¡¯t contained by the sand wall, reverberating everywhere. It was so strong, the ice spears disintegrated before even coming close to the ground, the shattered shards shining like daylight stars in the sky. Velvet looked at them, amazed at the shotgun artifact power. How much would something like that cost? She saw Skogul looking in her direction, before his eyes widened, and screamed something in a strange language. Two corpses jumped at her, tossing her to the ground. She felt something smack them, augmenting the pressure over her body. Getting over the surprise, she pushed the corpses away, finding them strangely joined. Soon, she realized why. An ice spear had stabbed them, fully crossing the first corpse, and more than half the second. Velvet pressed her lips and raised her gaze, her eyes meeting Igern¡¯s. Chapter 82. Down the stairs She expected this encounter, all things considered. Either him or Alrai, and, since she could kind of deal with Alrai with her current skills, fate had simply given her the bigger fish. Oh, and Creftalia was there too, standing behind Igern with a heavy-looking staff. Poor girl, stuck with such a teammate¡­ Velvet pushed the corpses fully away from her, getting up. Where the spear had struck, a layer of frost began to grow, spreading over the two bodies. So he''s using curses this time. She looked at Skugol. Drifa and Syon were busy with the apathy mage, so she only could count with his help. Skugol nodded, extending his arms, deploying the undead in an ample arch. Like Drifa, Igern was from the Tyranny Paradigm, the middle ground between Wrath and Pride. A bad combination, honestly. They were petty, vindictive, prideful, and had the raw strength to match. Ironically, the principal threat to a tyranny mage was another tyranny mage, so teams tended to only have one. Having two would simply cause too much rivalry and infighting, up to a dangerous level. The reason? They needed to be the strongest. Like Igern¡¯s hate for Dianthus, and Drifa¡¯s obsession with finding the mage that defeated her in the Arena, mages from that Paradigm were competitive to an unhealthy extreme. Just the idea of putting two or more together was laughable. Of course, in the case it happened, being in the middle wouldn¡¯t be so funny. Igern looked at the corpses uninterested, before leaping down from the column to face them. Like Drifa, he planned to take them out with an Ice Spear Rain. Velvet grinned upon seeing the translucent tips appearing over their heads. Boom! Three paper figurines teleported to them, blowing them up to dust. ¡°Creftalia! Fourth behind you!¡± She ¡®warned¡¯. Creftalia panicked, deploying a shield around her. But nothing happened. ¡°Good, twenty seconds without support for Igern.¡± Velvet mocked them. Like Tristan had told her, staffs capables of creating shields took ten seconds at least to set up, and ten to set off. Creftalia''s mouth opened in surprise, realizing her Velvet-related trauma had made her overreact. But such were the downsides of the Remembrance Paradigm. Once something or someone hurt them, they didn¡¯t forget. And Velvet was an expert at abusing those memories. ¡°Don¡¯t bother to turn the shield off. I don¡¯t need you to take on two clowns.¡± Igern said, not bothering to look at Creftalia. ¡°C¡¯mon dude, respect your teammate a little bit¡­¡± Skogul said. ¡°So you can take two clowns at once, hm? Kinky.¡± Velvet said in a sly tone, making Igern grimace with disgust. He didn¡¯t bother to answer, which only meant Velvet wasn¡¯t provoking him good enough. She might not have managed to piss off the Grahams until they lost their cool, since they were just sooo stone faced all the time, but the same couldn¡¯t be said for Igern. And Velvet liked to tease people, even more when they were so prideful. She wanted to push them off the stairs from where they looked down on the rest. So she got ready, triggering the charms under the corpses'' meat. Two corpses stomachs¡¯ burst open, with long, slippery vines sprouting from them, burying themselves under the basalt columns. The floor under Igern shook, cracks running all over it. Igern jumped back, careful as to not fall into the holes. ¡°Hahaha!¡± Velvet laughed. ¡°Hey, Creftalia! Does that staff let you levitate?!¡± Creftalia looked down at the basalt column she was standing on. From the bottom, vines crawled, burying themselves under it, crushing the supporting pillar. Igern grit his teeth, forced to go back and craft an ice pillar to substitute the lost one. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Boom! A paper figurine exploded next to him, buried next to the vines. He covered his face, but the explosion wave still smashed him against the pillars. ¡°You fucking¡­¡± Velvet heard him curse. Clearly, her unfair way of fighting, targeting Creftalia even when she wasn¡¯t getting involved to force him to step on traps, was getting to him. ¡°C¡¯mon, use your big boy words¡­ I refuse to believe a little bang is all it takes to cut your claws.¡± She teased. Igern slowly rose to his feet. Blood was dripping down the side of his face, as he turned to look at Velvet, a twisted, hateful expression over it. Frost started to condense around him, forming a thin armor. Now, she cheered inside. Now he is pissed. Grinning, Velvet jumped over a broom. ¡°Come get me, baby boy. If you can.¡± Flying away as fast as she could, she didn¡¯t look back. Not that she needed to. A crushing noise and several spears almost grazing her proved that Igern was closely behind, chasing her. That was the plan she and Syon had made to deal with Igern. They couldn¡¯t afford the energy and materials to stall him, not when there were fourteen mages after Syon. So, they came with a plan. Bait him away. The easiest way of dealing with a Wrath-adjacent Paradigm was simply¡­ don¡¯t. It wasn¡¯t worth it. Velvet simply had to survive long enough to lose track of him, locate Syon and team up again. Lose track of him¡­ She repeated in her mind. She had previously planned to go towards the active volcano, to lower Igern¡¯s ice weapon¡¯s efficiency, but she wasn¡¯t accustomed to such environments, and the lack of knowledge was a knowledge mage''s biggest weakness. The forest? I¡¯m used to forests, but so its Igern. The city? Yes. Decision made, she followed the path towards the city zone, closely followed by Igern, and even more closely followed by Igern¡¯s spears. ¡­ Tak. Tak. Tak. ¡°Creftalia, right?¡± Syon started, looking at the abandoned girl. ¡°You-¡± Tak. ¡°Shoul-¡± Tak. ¡°Sho-¡± Tak. Syon turned, glaring at Drifa, who was hitting the shield with an ice pick. ¡°May you stop for a few seconds, please?¡¤ ¡°Do we need her to turn off the staff?¡± She responded, threateningly waving the weapon. ¡°I can break it down.¡± ¡°I would like to try a reasonable approach first.¡± ¡°You do you.¡± She sighted, lowering the ice pick. Syon cleared his throat. ¡°Thank you. Now, Creftalia. I promise you a swift, harmless loss, if you turn off the staff¡¯s shield.¡± Creftalia pressed her lips, a feeling of apprehension creeping over her. ¡­ The whole trip took three minutes. Three eternal minutes where Velvet lost Syon¡¯s sand golem, Drifa¡¯s ice chunks and all her paper figurines except one to buy time. She also lost three brooms, two potions to stop the freezing curse and one to stop the bleeding from her leg, where Igern had managed to land a hit. The guy was awfully insistent, which made Velvet doubt her chances at losing him. She had to try, at least. Because Kartal was probably observing, so she had to look the part. A freezing wind knocked her from the broom. She was prepared, having heard Igern¡¯s chant, using the earring to reduce her weight, nullifying the fall damage, and opening the umbrella to block the following ice spears, landing swiftly on the street. I¡¯m not losing him, and flying any more will just tire me out. She was panting, the chase leaving her exhausted. And yet, Igern stood in front of her. ¡°You know?¡± She started, smiling. ¡°I¡¯m sure my companions have taken Creftalia out already.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll go for them next.¡± Igern simply said. ¡°Haha! Guess chasing me is way more fun, hm?¡± ¡°Absolutely not.¡± He summoned a new spear, this one with runes running across the ice. Velvet squinted, taking a step back. Igern took a step forward. Will I really have to use the chain now? After all the work it took to be fixed? She had abused the hell out of the materials provided by Kartal, and didn¡¯t want to waste them on Igern. I was holding it as a surprise¡­ Oh, well. Straightening her back, Velvet grinned at Igern. ¡°Are you feeling shy now? Come faster.¡± Igern squinted at her. He had complete confidence in being able to take any trick she could keep in her sleeves. Even so, he was cautious, summoning five ice greatswords, who hovered in the air. Swish! He sent them straight for Velvet. Cling! Something slashed at them, breaking them in pieces. Velvet flinched, not being the one who did that. And Igern realized so too, taking a step back, waiting for the ice shards to settle. The first thing she saw was a silhouette, dressed in an Arhontissian mage uniform, and pale hair. ¡°Dianthus.¡± Igern said, clearly trying to contain his disdain for the guy, and failing. ¡°I don¡¯t need your help.¡± ¡°Right.¡± Dianthus answered, making an uncomfortable smile while scratching his head. ¡°About that¡­¡± Chapter 83. Stay put Velvet stared at Dianthus¡¯ back, who was having some silent staredown contest with Igern, and then to her sides. To her right was the water canal she had navigated before. To her left an empty street. And behind her was another possible exit. She took a step back carefully, testing the waters. Dianthus moved his hand, making a short sweeping motion. The whole river rose, floating. It changed course, going around the two possible streets Velvet could escape for, before going back to the canal. ¡°Wow, thanks for nothing¡­¡± She said, now stuck between two Arhontissians and a floating river. Dianthus ignored Velvet''s complaints. He had appeared sooner than needed, because he wanted to take Igern out before the exit closed. Igern was a problem, one he didn¡¯t want to be checking for once shit hit the fan. Looking into Igern¡¯s thoughts, he was already about to attack him. He didn¡¯t even bother to ask me why¡­ C¡¯mon, aren¡¯t you even a bit curious? Igern launched himself against Dianthus, spear ready. Dianthus answered by pulling out his own weapon, a sword. They exchanged blows, the weapons clashing, sparks raining. Dianthus grit his teeth, taking a step back one after another. His breath came out in mist, and his feet were getting covered in frost. So that¡¯s what Igern¡¯s spear does. Velvet noticed, seeing how Dianthus was slowly losing ground. So much for that wannabe cool entrance. The combat ended once Igern made several ice spears sprout from the ground, nailing Dianthus before stabbing him, his spear crossing his body side to side. He then raised his hand, creating several ice greatswords, and smashing them against Dianthus. Or whatever remained of him after this. Velvet¡¯ smile flinched, feeling Igern¡¯s reaction a bit¡­ over exaggerated. ¡°Igern?¡± She called for the guy, who kept attacking the remains. He stopped, clicking his tongue. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I think he''s already dead.¡± Igern stared at her in silence. ¡°No. He won¡¯t ta-¡± A compressed, potent water stream came from the river, hitting Igern across the street, smashing him to a wall. Dianthus got up, his clothes all tattered and bloody, unlike his body. He looked down, caressing his hand over them, the stab holes mending and the blood disappearing in a red mist. ¡°Wha¡­¡± Understanding now what Hyde meant by the Chosen One¡¯s immortality, Velvet complained. ¡°That''s not fair at all!¡± ¡°Life isn¡¯t fair. Get used to it.¡± Dianthus answered nonchalantly. ¡°I don¡¯t mean life. I meant the Arena rules. That clearly was a ¡®Life threatening wound¡¯.¡± ¡°And I¡¯m above the rules.¡± He joked, shrugging. ¡°Just kidding. Those rules depend on the mage. Look at Igern.¡± He pointed to the guy, who was getting up, again. ¡°If that was¡­ let¡¯s say, you. You would be out by now.¡± ¡°So, for you, which no wound can be considered ¡®life threatening¡¯, those rules are basically no rules, am I wrong?¡± Velvet finished Dianthus'' sentence, ignoring the clear underlying threat. ¡°Exactly. I¡¯m simply built different.¡± Both Velvet and him stared at each other in silence. ¡°Igern, I¡¯m so sorry¡­¡± Velvet said, with pity. ¡°I was accusing you of being such a sour ass, and didn¡¯t realize you had to fight against an eternal battle of attrition¡­ even when you¡¯re more strong, skilled, beautiful, better company¡­¡± ¡°You made up the last part.¡± Dianthus interrupted her, not discussing the other points. If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°You just came here saying ¡®I¡¯m above the rules¡¯, so no.¡± ¡°And I didn¡¯t stab you, try to kill you or harm you.¡± ¡°Oh, so that¡¯s the bar we are setting? We can still go lower!¡± ¡°Not my fault all the men around your age want to kick your ass. You put the bar there yourself.¡± Dianthus referred to Alrai, Ethra and Igern himself. Maybe Agorn too. ¡°That¡¯s a lie, you are nitpicking. I¡¯ll say around half of them do.¡± She had Nereus, Syon and Skogul at her side¡­ more or less. ¡°Still sounds like a you issue¡­¡± ¡°Shut up.¡± Igern groaned. ¡°Both of you.¡± He had tried, keyword tried, to take a small rest, since, unlike Dianthus, he couldn¡¯t heal wounds, but the babbling of the two idiots quickly got to his nerves. ¡°Okay, okay.¡± Dianthus said, walking towards him while spinning the sword in his hands like a baton. ¡°Well, Igern, you woke me up so nicely today, so I¡¯m putting you to sleep. No hard feelings.¡± ¡°Fuck you.¡± ¡°C¡¯mon dude, you can do bett-¡± Boom! A paper figurine, the last one, teleported behind Dianthus, exploding next to his head. He recoiled, wincing in pain, his right eardrum busted. That didn¡¯t prevent the left one from hearing Velvet¡¯s taunt. ¡°Woops! Hand slipped!¡± Several vines sprouted from the floor, directed to both of them. Dianthus cut the ones closest to him, while Igern froze the others. ¡°Let me guess, slip of hand again?¡± ¡°I just woke up so clumsy!¡± The cut vines started quickly rotting, releasing some sleeping charms. Clumsy my ass! Dianthus thought, I can see you doing sketchy shit back there! He felt approaching danger, turning to block Igern¡¯s spear attack. ¡°I am immune to sleep curses! But Igern isn¡¯t!¡± ¡°He can become my sleeping prince then.¡± Was what Velvet¡¯s mouth said. He can go down first then. Was what Velvet¡¯s thoughts said. Dianthus¡¯ smile twitched. Can you stop with the mixed signals? I am on your side! By wanting to prevent you from escaping! ¡­ Velvet was going through her bag of seeds way too fast for her liking. It wasn¡¯t her fault, Dianthus had closed her exits with a damn floating river. ¡°Think I can pull his soul into the cursed mirror?¡± She asked her companion. ¡°He will be fine anyway.¡± ¡°Oho,¡± She heard Hyde¡¯s mocking tone. ¡°So now the duck who looks, talks and behaves like a duck is no longer a duck.¡± ¡°He lost his duck privileges right now. Say, wanna see if I can use the chaining sigil on his skin?¡± ¡°Do you even need to ask?¡± ¡°The problem lies in touching him long enough¡­ Maybe if Igern collaborated.¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t bet on it.¡± ¡°Hyde, I''m running out of seeds. I need solutions, not complaints.¡± ¡°Well, we¡¯re out of luck.¡± ¡°Luck, hm.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Yes, I¡¯m sure it''s gonna work.¡± Velvet rummaged in search for the luck charms. ¡°Oh, yes. Luck, fate, send me a hero.¡± Velvet saw the luck charms failing, her luck getting worse. She chuckled, using a few more. Due to her luck being bad already, the charms kept on failing. ¡­ Dianthus saw Velvet doing stuff in the background, laughing to herself. He didn¡¯t like it at all, and her thoughts were a mixture of ¡®This is gonna be so hilarious if it works¡¯ and ¡®This is going to go horrible, but at least I can finally be rid of these useless charms¡¯. He wanted to stop her, but the endless stream of vines and Igern weren¡¯t making it easy. Especially Igern. It''s not like he was getting tired, or something like that. Velvet could be scheming all day, and every single idea would be useless once put in practice, but he had to make sure she stayed put. And unharmed, which she seemed adamant in trying not to be. He felt two mages getting closer to them, and he didn¡¯t need to check their thoughts to know who they were. There were only two mages she could attract with bad luck. ¡°Sorry Igern, it''s fun to see you try over and over again, but now you really have to go.¡± Dianthus said, converging all the sleeping charms Velvet had put on the vines and slamming them against Igern. Velvet flinched, feeling her control over the vines just slipping away, becoming unable to recover it. ¡°Since when could you do that?¡± She asked, resignation in her face. ¡°Since the start. That¡¯s why mages don¡¯t tend to use magic from unrelated Paradigms, it makes the spells easier to hijack.¡± ¡°From mages from the spell¡¯s original Paradigm, not anyone. But, let me guess, you¡¯re also above those rules?¡± ¡°Nice to see you¡¯re starting to understand.¡± Velvet¡¯s¡­ no, Dianthus¡¯ vines turned around, going towards Velvet. ¡°And now, you¡¯re going to stay put while I deal with your mess.¡± The mess in question arrived at that moment. Ethra Graham and Alrai Siberetti. Chapter 84. A single finger Alrai was the first to notice them, grinning from ear to ear. Ethra was next, with his usual expressionless face, characteristic of the Grahams. He didn¡¯t even bother to do the fake forced smile he did to Nereus on the airship. Velvet peeked from between the ¡®bars¡¯ of the vine jail Dianthus put her in. ¡°Alrai! Oh, how much I missed you!¡± ¡°What did you do now?¡± Alrai asked, looking between her and Dianthus. ¡°Nothing! I am innocent!¡± ¡°We all know that isn¡¯t true.¡± Dianthus said. ¡°It is if she pleads insanity.¡± Ethra said. Velvet looked straight to him, a not well meaning smile in her lips. ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ I was pretty sober when I killed your brother.¡± The next instant, several knives shot towards her. Velvet had the umbrella ready, but she didn¡¯t even need to bother. Dianthus simply knocked the knives away with some stolen vines. ¡°So, about your innocence¡­¡± He started. ¡°I¡¯m still innocent! He had it coming!¡± Clearly annoyed at the interference, Ethra scoffed. "I have no quarrel with you. Whatever your business is, cut it short." He finished, some disdain in his voice. ¡°Cut it short? Why? Don¡¯t you care for your legs?¡± Dianthus raised one hand, his palm open and fingers together, covering Ethra¡¯s legs. Then, he raised his hand, covering Ethra¡¯s head. ¡°Or¡­ is your head the one you don¡¯t want?¡± Ethra squinted, the threat clear in his mind. Unlike Igern, may he rest in peace, he had no reason nor desire to confront the Chosen One. His problem lay with the girl behind him, who was resting her arms against the vine bars while looking at their quarrel with a mocking smile, as if a theater play was going on. Yes, Velvet had more than realized Dianthus wanted her unharmed. He wasn¡¯t exactly subtle, and, since she doubted it was for a good motive, she needed to prevent it at all costs. So, opening her mouth again, she kept on provoking. ¡°Aww, are you scared? You know who else got scared when going against a bigger enemy? Your big bro-¡± ¡°Shut up.¡± Ethra said between his teeth, his patience hitting its limit. Why can''t you simply ask for help like a normal human being? Instead of doing whatever the hell you¡¯re doing? Dianthus really wanted to sew her mouth shut. Wait, where is the other guy? A sharp sting hit his back, and he fell like a broken toy, his spine broken. Alrai put one foot over him, and then another, using him as a stand before doing a reverence, making sure Dianthus felt his heels¡¯ pressure. ¡°And thus, our beloved ''maiden in distress'' gets saved by the jester.¡± The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Velvet clapped, her voice filled with emotion. ¡°Such a heartwarming tale! Ethra, why aren¡¯t you clapping?¡± Ethra was confused, and angry, mostly angry, his attention going back and forth between Alrai and Velvet, before setting on Alrai. ¡°Explain.¡± Alrai pressed his lips in a thin line, looking at Velvet. ¡°I can assure you, he would¡¯ve eventually come to the answer on his own.¡± ¡°I was betting on him not doing so, so allow me to differ.¡± Velvet said, still behind the vines. ¡°But I¡¯ll give him points for not losing his cool.¡± Before Ethra could complain, Alrai pressed his feet down, keeping Dianthus¡¯ back broken and unhealed. ¡°Ethra, why would a caged, unarmed and defenseless mage insist on provoking an enemy?¡± Ethra kept silent. ¡°Alrai, you explain stuff like shit.¡± Velvet said. ¡°Listen to me. How are magic tricks performed? And I don¡¯t mean magic magic, I mean showman¡¯s magic.¡± She lifted one hand, a string of paper figurines with their hands joined sliding down. ¡°First, you bait people¡¯s attention, so they don¡¯t notice the trick, and then¡­¡± The paper figurines light up, sparking in a colorful rain. ¡°You show them magic.¡± She finished, now out of the cage. Ethra squinted. She had toyed with him, using his hostility as a tool to distract Dianthus from Alrai. But, for what? Dianthus was protecting her, in a way. He strained his mind, not wanting to be mocked again. Slowly, he came to an answer. Well, not much of an answer than a string of recurring events during his life. Namely, the ¡®recruitment¡¯ Arhotissian mages did to Charlampian mages every now and then to make them change fates. Like with Nebura Dorna, it wasn¡¯t just a singular case. Ethra now understood the reason behind the over the top hostility Velvet had against Dianthus. It was also one of his mother''s worries, since it was clearly a way to destabilize and weaken the Charlampian mage families. And it was slowly working, shown in the constantly decreasing number of mages affiliated to that region. And it''s not like they could complain, being the losing side of the war. Still, being the last one to realize what Velvet and Alrai planned after just exchanging gazes bothered him. It wasn¡¯t jealousy, it was the firm line between mages with field experience and housecat-like mages. Housecat mages was the term used for the opposite of wandering mages, but it wasn¡¯t used exactly as a compliment. Usually used for descendants of powerful families, who were raised between concerns for their safety, due to the hostile nature of mages; rich in resources, spells and knowledge, but poor in real-life situations. An example of housecat mages included: Syon, Gertine, Creftalia and Ethra himself. Creftalia was babysitted by Igern, and it was known how that turned out; Syon had three mages babysitting him, but he was trained by Kartal, which reduced his housecat mage state. Gertine and Ethra had a bit more freedom, but, in reality, there was always another mage supervising them, and that ended up affecting their skills development. In housecat mages¡¯ defense, they had way more enemies and dangers to their life than wandering mages, so giving freedom to them was equal to putting a target on their back and tossing them into a shooting range. That was the principal reason the Mergifari had so many safety measures to prevent murders. After all, it was established by and for ancient mage lineages, and, the older a family was, the more enemies they ended up developing with time. Murders still happened, but were extremely isolated cases, and never to members of big families. Ironically, the majority of murders in the Mergifari had wandering mages as victims, with housecat mages as perpetrators, just the opposite of the cases outside. Alas, if one wanted a more offensive term used for wandering mages, stray mages was the one commonly used. Saying that, having an overprotective childhood didn¡¯t exactly benefit them towards scheming mages. ¡°He¡¯s a ¡®Recruiter¡¯?¡± He finally said. Alrai smiled proudly at his deduction. Am I a what now? Dianthus thought, still feeling the heel¡¯s pressure on his back. Well, honestly, that deduction made more sense than the truth, so he couldn¡¯t exactly complain. ¡°That changes nothing.¡± He added, shortly after. ¡°Personally, I don¡¯t care if you sold yourself to Arhontissa, Idir, or whoever wanted you, you still-¡± ¡°Killed my brother, who I must avenge!¡± She finished the sentence, and waved her hand, not interested in discussing the morality of her murder with Ethra. ¡°I know, I know, cut it out.¡± Ethra¡¯s brows frowned, but was interrupted by Alrai, who spoke first. ¡°Well then, I guess our ¡®truce¡¯ is over.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Velvet proceeded to raise the hand she hadn¡¯t shown during her ¡®magic trick¡¯. A long, black chain was dangling from it, and they didn¡¯t see the end. ¡°I never said my goal was teaming up with you two, did I?¡± Something scraped the floor around them, hidden in the debris. Ethra refused to take a step back, even when he felt the disadvantage. And Alrai had to keep still, or Dianthus would just regenerate. Without noticing anything, all three of them had fallen into Velvet''s trap, without her having to lift a single finger. Chapter 85. Time, time, always so little time Finally, they were all reunited. All fourteen of them. It had taken them a while, since some of them had entered way too far away. But now, the wait was over. And the ritual could be started. Vina had finished setting the altar, and Peril, once he arrived, had started drawing the summoning circle, with all the magical sigils from memory. The result? An enormous circle, with fourteen smaller protective circles surrounding it, every single one connected to the others and the big one with triangles, pentagrams, and straight lines; all of them having text written in Hell¡¯s tongue in the middle. Inside the big circle was another circle, this one smaller, and away from the fourteen safe zones. No amount of precaution was enough when summoning a devil¡¯s conscience. Even if it was a sealed one. From the big circle to the small, central circle, an insane amount of text, coupled with a myriad of symbols, written in a spiraling sentence, was still being written by a sweating Peril, even after all this time. And, in the total middle, not only of the summoning formation, but also of the whole pocket dimension, was a book. It was not a small book. Vina needed Bermu¡¯s help to set it correctly, without ruining any of the sigils. If opened, she could lay inside without bending any extremity, simply positioning herself from the top left corner to the bottom right corner. Not like the book was getting open. Not because she didn¡¯t want to, which she didn¡¯t, but because she couldn''t. She didn¡¯t have the means, nor did any of the other thirteen mages, even if they all combined forces. The seal had been made by high-ranked mages, reinforced every year. Under the book, was a silver chalice. Its parts had no soft edges, made with sharp, thin, resembling broken glass splinters. She had to wrap the base with a cloth to handle it, due to not only looking sharp, but being sharp. If circles, spirals, and round edges facilitated the magic conduction; straight angles, pointy figures and polyhedrons did the opposite, isolating and breaking the magic. The chalice was an insulator, its primary function making sure that the thing they were about to pull out from the book could not extend its influence too far. Another security measure was in the formation itself. All the drawn triangles had the mission of breaking the magic who went from inside the formation to outside it, while allowing them to use their magic from outside the formation to inside it without any obstacle, all due to the spell Peril was writing. Apart from the chalice and the book, there was a lectern, where the book was resting. It had no more uses than that. What they were about to do was siphon some of the sealed devil¡¯s blood. With it, defeating all the mages guarding Syon would be a piece of cake. Mages consumed demons to get stronger, and the same could be said for devils, except that doing the latter was impossible. Mages were no match for devils. Udulluay resided with absolute freedom in the middle of the island where the strongest mage families inhabited. He was before them, and would remain after them. No one could change that. So, even when they had a fully sealed, weakened and starved devil, eating it was still impossible. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. The boon from drinking the devil¡¯s blood wasn¡¯t eternal, only spanning for a week. But they didn¡¯t need a week, only a few hours. ¡°It¡¯s done.¡± Peril said, cleaning the sweat from his forehead with his sleeves. ¡°Give me five minutes, and we can start.¡± ¡­ Ethra had lived better days, to be honest. Worse ones too, but that depended if Velvet chained him again. He didn¡¯t trust what the madwoman could pull off before the safety measures kicked in. ¡°Why are you running?¡± Velvet laughed a bit when he rolled on the floor to escape one of the chains. He knew she was toying with him, making feints and letting him escape on purpose, dragging the fight. Ethra had somewhat assumed she had forgotten about the poisoning intent on the airship. Clearly, she had not. ¡°Say¡­¡± Alrai started, tapping on Dianthus¡¯ back with his shoes. ¡°Do we get a truce if I let you go?¡± ¡°Lemme think about it¡­¡± He slightly lifted his cheek from the floor. ¡°Nope, in fact, once I get free, I¡¯m taking you down first. And then I¡¯m taking down your boyfriend. Ngh!¡± He winced when Alrai increased his pressure, breaking something else. ¡°I have to say, your dedication in pursuing such a woman is admirable. Suicidal and masochistic too, but admirable nonetheless.¡± Alrai snickered. ¡°Oh, but I do hope your balls hurt after it.¡± ¡°Thanks for your sympathy.¡± Dianthus said. But the time it¡¯s almost up. ¡­ Igern wasn¡¯t coming back. Creftalia noticed. She had been waiting, at least until the shield decided to give up, which would be soon enough, under the repeated chops of Drifa¡¯s axe. She had lost once again. Will they send me home if I keep failing? She had doubts about that. Failure probably meant an intensification of trials, just like when she lost at the Arena, and the higher-ups ordered her to do more, not to take a break. I wish they would send me home. Not because of Velvet, Drifa or Igern. She simply didn¡¯t feel safe. At least, not on the Mergifari. It smelled too much of rot. ¡­ Peril had rested, so now they were ready to start the siphon summon. Vina entered one of the external circles, and so did the remaining members, one in each circle, carrying a golden staff. She cleared her throat, feeling scared and excited, all in the same measure. Looking around, she waited for everyone to be ready, nodding when each one of them gave the signal. ¡°Alright. One¡­ two¡­¡± They raised the staffs in unison, their hearts beating like crazy. ¡°Three!¡± Slam! They hit the bottom on the floor at the same time, a reverberating, metallic sound jumping over the walls, the formation starting to activate. The staffs were raised again. ¡°Frenese!¡± Slam! ¡°Frenese!¡± The formation activated, a red light emanating from it. ¡°Tighten the seal, break the skin, drain the blood.¡± Slam! ¡°Frenese!¡± The light didn¡¯t stay still, moving to converge around the book, ¡®awakening¡¯ it. ¡°Close the eyes, shut the mouth, bow the head.¡± Slam! ¡°Frenese!¡± Some light particles disobeyed the formation, going backwards, but were intercepted by the sigils, disappearing under the earth. ¡°Bend the knees, unsharpen the claws, unbare the teeth.¡± Bang! ¡°Frenese!¡± The red light was now flowing continuously into the book, stirring the one inside. ¡°Carnage devil, beast of a hundred mouths, walking famine.¡± ¡­ Kartal¡¯s face revealed a grim expression once the chant started, watching the Opening Arena from the Selection room. Not only him, but any official mage who recognized the spell had changed their attention to those fourteen novices. Fear, expectation, admiration and envy were the principal emotions surrounding the scene. Whispers could be heard, everyone wanting to display their opinion. ¡°Using a sealed devil on the Opening? My, the Tarius really want to flaunt all their riches.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it a bit overkill? If money can buy victory, why do small families even bother? Certain artifacts should be forbidden.¡± ¡°And who decides which artifacts are allowed and which aren¡¯t? You? Do we big families need to handicap ourselves so as to not harm your feelings?¡± ¡°I say we remove shields, no one wants to watch wall-punching.¡± What they were doing, didn¡¯t break the rules. It fell under ¡®artifact usage¡¯, and Kartal knew it. And so did Sirius Tarius, the official mage under the Third Prince of Idir, and Vina¡¯s father, who was leisurely drinking some wine as he watched the summoning. Kartal saw the book trembling, its pages becoming tainted with dripping blood. Blood which slowly fell inside the chalice, drop by drop. The Scales of Poine weren¡¯t an ancient organization, able to compete with big families in terms of resources. Even if Kartal himself was a powerhouse, and could deal with mages who consumed devil¡¯s blood, the same couldn¡¯t be said for Syon and the others. After all, protecting was harder than punishing. Chapter 86. Second guess The chalice was full, and several stray drops slithered down the edges, getting stuck on the sharp crevices. ¡°Frenese!¡± ¡°Sleep, slumber, go back below.¡± Finishing the incantation, they waited for the moving red light to disappear, and for the heavy atmosphere to dissipate. Vina licked a trail of sweat that was going down her face. Her chest was still beating like crazy, but now that the summon was over, so was the danger. ¡°It¡¯s finally over.¡± Bermu said. Vina wanted to respond that they still had to find Syon¡¯s mages, and that only after beating them, it would be truly over, but she didn¡¯t want to ruin his parade. For now. ¡°I¡¯ll get the chalice.¡± Taking a step outside the protective circle, he entered the formation. She waited, but Bermu only took a few more steps before stopping abruptly. ¡°I¡­¡± ¡°Bermu?¡± Vina asked, unconsciously gripping the staff with force. The guy opened his mouth, closed it, and licked his lips. He was sweating a lot. ¡°I-is there something to eat? I-I¡¯m so hungry¡­¡± Vina¡¯s eyes widened. She didn¡¯t need to order anything. All the mages still inside activated the staffs and the formation again. Bermu didn¡¯t say anything about their reaction, turning and pressing his palms against his stomach. ¡°Why does it feel so empty? I¡­ I don¡¯t want to feel hungry¡­¡± He sank his fingers inside the stomach, and started pushing his hand inside. ¡°What is¡­ what is the thing making me feel hungry?¡± Pulling his hand out, a string of guts was being held. ¡°Not enough¡­¡± ¡°I can still feel the hunger eating me from inside.¡± Shoving the hand once again, Bermu rummaged inside himself, searching for the origin of the hunger. Vina was panicking. They had been trying all the spells the formation possessed for dealing with these cases. Not only that, the safety measures for the Mergifari should¡¯ve kicked in once Bermu impaled himself. But they didn¡¯t. ¡°Not here¡­¡± Bermu said again, this time, pulling out his stomach, desperation in his voice. ¡°Maybe¡­ maybe the hunger is not down there¡­¡± Raising his bloody fingers, he pressed them against his eyes. ¡°Maybe this hunger hides in the brain¡­¡± ¡°Stop!¡± Vina screamed. It was for nothing. ¡­ Silence swept over the Selection Room. Kartal looked at Sirius Tarius. His previous smile had disappeared, replaced by a frown. The Director moved her hand, reaching inside the illusion, intending to grab Bermu. The illusion shattered, stopping the official mages from overseeing the pocket dimension. ¡°No!¡± A woman shouted. Kartal recognized her. Frillis Coaltheno, Bermu¡¯s mother. ¡°Did¡­ did you get him?¡± The Director didn¡¯t answer, but turned her head toward the list of mages who were already out. The last names were Ethra Graham and Alrai Siberetti, not Bermu Coaltheno. Frillis slowly fell into her seat, not before glaring at Sirius Tarius. She couldn¡¯t confront him, at least not while the Director was in the room. But that didn¡¯t change reality. Her son was dead. Her son was dead, under the team Sirius assembled. And that wasn¡¯t all. The novice mages on the formation didn¡¯t notice, all busy paying attention to Bermu¡¯s gruesome actions, but the official mages did. The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. The book was opening. ¡­ Velvet was starting to grow suspicious. She had taken care of Ethra and Alrai, well, Alrai was mostly a team effort, but she refused to call it that, considering the victory her own feat. Not shared with anyone else. Now, Dianthus, healed once again, had restricted himself to evading her chains while stopping her from getting away, putting her in a standstill. He was starting to act like a very annoying flea. At first, she thought it was a very insistent way of recruitment, but, the longer it dragged on, the more worried she became. Dianthus'' actions made no sense. He seemed adamant about Velvet remaining where she was. I¡¯m wasting magic trying to catch him¡­ She called her chains back, storing them, and stared at Dianthus in silence. Sensing Velvet¡¯s resignation, he couldn¡¯t help but poke at it. ¡°Where did all that dominance you were showing previously go? Was it a charade? Would you prefer me to be on the attack?¡± She laughed, pissed off. ¡°What do you mean, be on the attack? The same way you came here, just to be clapped by everyone? Your victories are just due to attrition.¡± ¡°Really? I would love to see you fight those two dudes alone, saying¡­ What was the thing you said? Oh, yeah.¡± Dianthus cleared his throat, and separated his arms, making a dramatic pose. Then, using a low, malicious, sensual voice, he quoted. "Tell me, guys. You''ve entered this maze with 206 bones each. Now¡­ with how many do you want to get out? Personally, I hope you don''t black out until I double them." Velvet smile flinched. ¡°I don¡¯t talk like that.¡± "Yes you do. Shut up, I¡¯m not done. Ejem.¡± He continued quoting Velvet. ¡°Don''t worry, I won''t break your fingers, so that you two can hold hands in the hospital." ¡°I barely broke anything. And I was just being dramatic.¡± She then shook her head. ¡°Stop trying to distract me.¡± ¡°Not my fault you¡¯re easy to distract. Oh.¡± Dianthus looked up, from one side of the sky to another. ¡°Time¡¯s up.¡± Velvet saw Dianthus¡¯ demeanor change, as if he was another person. His previous relaxed smile had grown a dangerous edge, and his posture had straightened. Feeling on guard, she squinted at him, taking a step back. ¡°Time for what?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not telling.¡± He said, before laughing. ¡°Just kidding. I need your cooperation, which is gonna be impossible unless I give you what you want.¡± ¡°So, let me tell you a story.¡± ¡­ After Dianthus told Velvet the prophecy, she stood quiet, pondering about it. ¡°You could¡¯ve stopped it.¡± She said. ¡°Just by telling the Director about what would happen before entering the pocket dimension.¡± ¡°And then what?¡± ¡°And then no one dies?¡± Dianthus laughed. ¡°For someone so merciless, you¡¯re still very innocent. It''s kinda cute, in a messed up way. No, I mean, after all that. How to explain the reason behind knowing about the future?¡± ¡°You¡¯re the Chosen One, say it was a prophecy.¡± ¡°My point. I am the Chosen One, not the Prophet. Do you know where prophets end? Sealed in towers, so that their prophecies don¡¯t end in the hands of their keeper¡¯s enemies.¡± Velvet understood Dianthus¡¯ refusal to explain his actions, but that brewed another question. ¡°What makes you think I won¡¯t sell you? Or are you simply going to kill me once this ends?¡± He scoffed, mocking Velvet. ¡°Chains related to lucid dreams. Survivor of the surface collapse in Casrey. You have secrets. Not interesting enough to make the big figures move, but, if you sell me out, we will sink together.¡± Rummaging through his clothes, Dianthus pulled out some kind of file, resembling the ones Kartal gave her about the fifteen mages, tossing it to Velvet. ¡°Until you can match gazes with the Mergifari¡¯s big shots, you should never, ever break character. Because that¡¯s when your freedom ends.¡± The file had her name. Velvet went through the pages, her blood running cold. Almost everything about her was there. When and where her Esca was opened, all the spells, knowledge and artifacts she possessed, weakness and strengths, details no one should know... The few things that weren¡¯t depicted were: anything about the Chained Man (it only said lucid dreaming, nothing specific), and Lothrigern. She was almost relieved upon not finding information about those two. Of course, Dianthus had to run his mouth. ¡°Oh, they don¡¯t know you have some relation with Lothrigern. But they will notice if you start doing things not on the file without a warning.¡± ¡°They were looking here until moments ago, right?¡± She referred to the official mages, to which Dianthus nodded. ¡°Then what guarantee do I have that your previous¡­ harassment won¡¯t raise any questions?¡± ¡°Mmm? Oh, you meant that. Easy, the chain spell on your file. I like teasing mages with strange skills until they use them on me, before kicking the hell out of them, so it¡¯s not a breach of character.¡± Velvet finished reading, and closed the file, extending it towards Dianthus to return it. ¡°Don¡¯t bother. Take it as a gift.¡± He wasn¡¯t being nice, he simply was quoting a section of the file: Generating compliance: This mage is easily swayed with gifts. Neither compliments nor threats work. Velvet sighted at him. She now understood Kartal, Alrai and Tristan¡¯s behaviors. Just how many people had seen her file? Dianthus mocked her face, continuing. ¡°After all, it¡¯s gonna be the last gift whose intentions you won¡¯t second guess.¡± Chapter 87. Devour me twice, even when you dont remember Vina fell to her knees, her will to fight disappearing. It was over. They had no way out. When did we go wrong? Every step was done correctly. We made no mistakes. A mage¡¯s fears became too much, and he exited the protective circle, trying to run away. He only managed to take a few steps, before stopping and touching his stomach. ¡°I-Is there something to eat? I-I¡¯m so hungry¡­¡± She closed her eyes, not wanting to see what transpired next. Even so, the sobs of her companions, curses, and prayers to several gods filled her ears. But no one came. They were going to die here. The book was open, and the devil was out. She didn¡¯t look at him, her head low and eyes closed, but she heard him. The wet, crunching noises right in front of her made it abundantly clear. The gluttony devil. Frenese. He was eating Bermu. Nothing would remain from Bermu. Nothing except his guts. Reason why those were the first things the influenced, hungry mages removed. Maybe it was because he didn¡¯t like the taste, or maybe it was some sort of ritual. It didn¡¯t matter. Not to her. Frenese finished his first meal, and Vina felt him moving, stopping right in front of her. None of them did anything for a brief moment. ¡°Where¡­¡± She asked. ¡°Where did we fail?¡± Devils were not mindless beasts. They were smart, smarter than most humans, more deceptive and perceptive too. He knew who Vina''s father was. He knew she was a Tarius, a member of the bloodline who imprisoned him. Frenese crouched in front of her, and Vina saw one of his hands pressing the formation. His hands still weren¡¯t corporeal, which meant his full body wasn¡¯t out, and at least part of the seal was still active. And yet, that didn¡¯t prevent him from eating, or scratching the stone floor. Neither the floor nor the formation were a match against his strength, getting pushed aside like sand. Looking down, Vina couldn¡¯t stop the pained whine coming from her mouth. There was a second formation. Right under their own. And she didn¡¯t need Frenese to explain anything to her. They had fallen into a trap. Someone had anticipated their actions, countering them in the worst possible way, dooming everyone. Vina realized their protective circles weren¡¯t doing anything. They never had. And she was so, so hungry. ¡­ Kartal¡¯s worry was progressively increasing. The portal to the pocket dimension had been sealed shut, the monitoring spells all ruined. They couldn''t see, hear or do anything. If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. The Director, together with Hasdrubal and other members of the Mergifari¡¯s High Command were trying to crack open a new portal, but that would take a while. Like finding a drop of oil in a lake, they needed to first locate the microscopic point where the dimension fell once the portal got cut. And that wasn¡¯t a job they could hurry. Hadrubal created thousands of formations continuously, while the others supplied them with magic, filling the Selection room in a myriad of flashing lights. The only reassuring thought they had was that the devil was a gluttony one, so, unlike a sloth one, it was unable to teleport the pocket dimension, which allowed them a sliver of hope. They didn¡¯t know that in Dianthus¡¯ original prophecy, that fact didn¡¯t save anyone. ¡­ Velvet had finished setting up the fae altar bells. To get closer to the devil¡¯s origin without: quoting Dianthus¡¯ ¡®Ripping your guts out¡¯, she had to ask for protection. And the only one who could travel anywhere, including a sealed, lost pocket dimension was Lothigern. Not the official mages, and not the gods. Now, that He answered and gave Velvet some protection was something they needed to find out. She had asked Dianthus what he used as protection, but, as to quote him once again: ¡®I¡¯m simply built different¡¯ was the answer. Well, she would have to trust his confident words. And so, she started chanting. ¡°From the center¡­ to between.¡± ¡°From the earthbound¡­to the fae that travels unbounded.¡± ¡°I¡¯m Velvet Consestella Dobastro, and I call for Lothrigern, so that He may protect me from the Devil of Gluttony¡¯s hunger.¡± She had never called for Him outside the dream. Would she melt on the spot? Would she lose control, mutating into a monster? As she stood still waiting in silence, Dianthus started fidgeting, clearly wanting to say something. And, since he was no coward, he decided to ask and try to see if his doubts could be cleared. ¡°By the way¡­ what is your relationship with Lothrigern? Are you lovers?¡± Velvet stared at him blankly for a few seconds, repeating his words in her mind. ¡°What?¡± Running his mouth without a care in the world, he continued. ¡°I¡¯m just saying, isn¡¯t he like a million and half years old? And you don¡¯t look above twenty, surely he can find someone more around his age, right?¡± ¡°...¡± Not reading the room, or simply not wanting to, he kept pressing. ¡°Someone like¡­ half a million years old?¡± ¡°We¡¯re not lovers.¡± She ended answering, still maintaining that blank look. She didn¡¯t refute that Lothrigern was beautiful, but¡­ Was dying a horrible death worth the lay? Was it? It probably would be an unique experien- ¡°Ah.¡± Dianthus stopped her atrocious train of thought. The space in the middle of the bell circle chose that moment to bend, a small figure coming out. It wasn¡¯t Lothrigern, not even a mini-version, which would have terrified Velvet more than the full-fledged version. No, instead it was some kind of mixture between a dragonfly and a dragonfly-sized human. It had the tail and the wings of the dragonfly, and the body and head of a human, with no clothes nor genitalia. Its skin was pale white, translucent. So translucent, in fact, that its inner organs could be seen from outside. The creature possessed two hearts, and an unnerving amount of blue veins, arteries and capillaries, who gave it a striped appearance. Its eyes were fully black, and its tiny smile was full of sharp, pointy teeth. It fluttered in the air, before approaching Velvet, who raised her palm for the fairy to land. Once it did, it wrapped its dragonfly-like tail around her wrist. ¡°A midnight dew pixie.¡± Dianthus introduced the fairy, which, according to Gertine¡¯s words, was better not to do. ¡°I thought you could only see them in ancient grimoires, not summon them.¡± He was clearly jabbing at the lover thing with that. ¡°Don¡¯t mind him.¡± Velvet told the pixie. ¡°He is envious of not being the specialiest boy ever. On everything. Only child behavior.¡± ¡°I know!¡± The chirpy, high pitched voice of the fairy startled her. ¡°Oh! Lothrigern told me to tell you!¡± ¡°Hm?¡± Dianthus¡¯ interest got picked. ¡°Not him. Not with him here.¡± The pixie repeated. ¡°I can cover my ears if you want.¡± He said, planning to simply read Velvet¡¯s mind once the pixie spoke. He had tried to read the pixie¡¯s mind, but, like with any fairy, their minds were a tangled mess of emotions, and in a tongue he didn¡¯t understand. ¡°No!¡± It refused, before starting to flutter its wings, pulling Velvet along. ¡°You won¡¯t feel hungry with me here, so hurry.¡± ¡°Hurry, hurry, hurry, before everyone dies.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± She didn¡¯t resist, but grabbed Dianthus¡¯ sleeve, pulling him along. ¡°But you go first, in case of an ambush.¡± ¡°I know.¡± Dianthus took a deep breath. He was the one who had to ¡®entertain¡¯ the devil while Velvet closed the book, after all. None of those two things were easy, but only he could stop the devil¡¯s advance. It was time for the second round, even when the first had never come to be. Chapter 88. Never ending feast, unchangeable decisions, all of them start with a bite They didn¡¯t need to search for the devil, or the formation, or the book. Not because it wasn¡¯t hidden, or because Dianthus already knew the location. No, instead, it was because of the enormous misty cloud made of red light particles surrounding the stone maze area and the smell. Now, Velvet was used to the smell of fish meat, having lived on Casrey all her life, where fishing was the most prominent job. But she wasn¡¯t used to the smell of raw meat. If she had to compare, the red mist smelled like a butcher¡¯s shop, if the butchery had a hundred people constantly working on butchering pigs. With no one buying. And the closer they got to the red mist, the more the area around them changed. A devil carries a piece of their original hell wherever they go. Udulluay¡¯s modified the reality around him, concealing everything and everyone, making them appear like hooded figures, every one of them identical to the other. Sound, smell, touch¡­ his mere presence affected all the senses. And Frenese¡¯s¡­ his hell was a stomach. The hard, cold stones forming the maze previously had softened, a wet glister covering them as they compressed and relaxed in procession, almost pushing them forward, towards the center. A liquid substance, bile-like, erupted every now and then from the soft holes in the wall, expelling a disgusting smell which permeated the already stiffened and humid air. It was hot. Not scorching hot, but Velvet felt her sweat sticking to her dress, mixing with the foul-smelling red mist. Her boots didn¡¯t fare better. After stepping over the fleshy road, some vile had grazed them, corroding the leather. She could only hope they lasted until the end. Dianthus fared the same, except that he had tried to directly touch the bile, burning his hand on the process. The first corpse they found was just at the maze¡¯s start. The mage had ripped his guts out, before stabbing his brain through the eyes with his fingers, making a gruesome scene. A third of his body had been undone by the bile already, getting slowly absorbed by the floor¡¯s flesh. The gluttony devil doesn¡¯t need to get you before devouring you. Velvet thought. A knot had formed in her stomach, and the pixie kept twisting its tail around her wrist. A feeling of absolute disgust towards food had grown on her, and she was sure it was the fairy¡¯s way of blocking the devil¡¯s influence. She hoped it only lasted until the fairy left, because she was prefering to starve to death than being forced to eat anything. Splat. Splat. Splat. Heavy, wet steps were coming towards their position. And there was only one thing interested in greeting them. A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Frenese. He didn¡¯t try to ambush them, trick them or pounce on them. No, he simply walked towards them, like a person would advance towards a table filled with delicacies: savoring the moment, picking the first plate they would want to taste with their eyes, but also choosing the second. Frenese. Velvet had thought about Udulluay when she heard the term ¡®devil¡¯ coming from Dianthus. But she was oh so wrong. Different hells made different devils. A short, first glance description of Frenese would be: a hundred mouthed wolf. Frenese was like a starved wolf. His bones pressed against his skin, marking every rib, vertebra, scapula¡­ devoid of any kind of fat, his stomach curved upwards, concave, absolutely empty. His hair was not animal hair; instead, it resembled long, extendable flesh leeches. With each step, the tendril-like leech meat hairs on his feet dug to the ground, connecting to the floor¡¯s newly formed stomach, sucking the nutrients it had previously devoured. On his back, lumps resembling malformed animal maws opened and closed. Like teratomas, some of the animal¡¯s partial faces had eyes and noses. Also starved and hungry, they constantly tried to escape his flesh connection, foaming and drooling, wanting to devour the walls, to devour everything. Always eating, but never full. The eternal consumption of a bottomless void. Instead, what they got was the tendril-like leeches injecting themselves on the fleshy walls, taking and taking, not giving anything to the mouths. Frenese¡¯s main head was formed by three conjoined wolf¡¯s heads, each side sharing an eye, with four eyes in total. Drool constantly flowed from his mouth, dripping into the floor. His eyes were fully open and white, like a rabid, mindless beast. But assuming he was one would be a mage''s last mistake. Four eyes looked at Velvet up and down, before focusing on Dianthus. Dianthus took a step back. He would lie if he said he wasn¡¯t a bit afraid. It would be the second time he fought the devil, and he knew what Frenese was thinking. The Chosen One is just a never-ending dish. ¡°You can leave now.¡± He told Velvet. ¡°Just¡­ hurry.¡± ¡°Goodluck, Dianthus.¡± Velvet answered, taking a step back before rushing towards another maze path. ¡°Good luck to you.¡± Dianthus said, not turning his head to look at Velvet¡¯s disappearing figure. He couldn¡¯t afford to do so. The second round had already started. ¡­ Velvet ran, her steps making splattering noises. She didn¡¯t want to use a broom, the constantly twisting and turning paths of the maze being difficult to maneuver. Breathing through her nose, as to prevent anything from getting into her mouth, she kept on advancing, the noises of Dianthus¡¯ fight reaching her. She hoped it was at least a fight, and not a one sided massacre. Even so, she acknowledged her power, and admitted her presence in that battle was not needed, and a would-be nuisance. Her skills lay in her chains. They were the only thing she possessed able to reseal the book. They did keep the Chained Man still, after all. But now, she had to hurry. ¡­ Velvet was aware of the gruesome sight waiting for her deep in the maze. But, even so, she had to use all her willpower to take the remaining steps. Demons needed a flesh passage to enter the material realm, same as devils. But only for entering. Once they were in, they didn¡¯t need any. Alas, where the law resided, the cheat did too. Flesh passages allowed demons and devils to ignore the laws forcing them to reside only in hell, giving them access to the material realm. And Frenese had figured out a way to use a flesh passage to ignore the seals who remained unbroken. In front of Velvet, there was a book. And, surrounding the book, there was a ring. Thirteen mages. Thirteen bodies mangled and twisted beyond recognition. Their arms and legs had been broken, bone shards stabbing the skin from the inside out, to facilitate the bloody tangling, the braiding, the completion of a flesh ring. A flesh ring which worked as a flesh portal. The squirming, coiling meat floated a few feets from the ground, the faces of the mages grimacing with each creak, with each noise. One of these faces met Velvet''s. It was Vina''s. She opened her mouth, a broken, strangled mess inside. But, even so, she managed to speak. "You. Are. Here." Velvet opened her own mouth, like a fish out of water, but nothing came out. She knew summoning a devil wasn''t their plan. No one would suicide willingly. They had simply been cheated. Used. And disposed of. Do you really want to become a mage? That was one of the things every mage always told her back in Casrey. You can never go back. Yes, I do. Was Velvet¡¯s answer every time. "Velvet." Vina spoke again with difficulty. "Help. Us." Her reminiscences broken, she managed to react. "H-how...? Have you seen...?" Vina stared at her in silence, her face a mix of hopelessness and defeat. Being made into a portal to hell had damaged their brains, Escas and souls. None of those were possible to heal. Both of them knew that. Velvet bit her tongue in silence. "I''m sorry." Even if they were enemies, their conflict was born based on the difference in choices of mages who weren''t themselves. She didn¡¯t know how they were still alive. Velvet lowered her head, looking to where her knife was stored. "There''s only one type of help I can offer." And it wasn¡¯t revenge. Was revenge even possible in this world? Chapter 89. Bookless chains The mages who ordered Vina and company to hunt Syon, just to dispose of them like this, would not be punished. Just fined. The face resembling Vina''s spoke again. "Do. Not. Be." "We. Are. Not. Different. Our. Fates. Are. Not. Different." "Kartal. And. Lucius. Are. Not. Day. And. Night. Fire. And. Water." "They. Are. Two. Sides. Of. Different. Coins." "Weight. The. Same." "Are. Worth. The. Same." Velvet shook her head, refusing Vina''s words. "Kartal wouldn''t do something like this." "Neither. Would. Lucius." She understood the meaning of Vina''s words. Lucius Tarius was her father, and Vina knew more about him than Velvet. Vina moved her eyes down, grimacing in pain, but managed to make Velvet look where she wanted. The second formation, hidden under the stone floor. Only a portion was visible, the one previously dug by Frenese, but it was enough for Velvet to connect the dots. She took a deep breath. Digging the whole formation out would take too much time, time she didn¡¯t have. But Vina¡¯s meaning was clear: ¡®The only thing separating our fates is a thin stone layer. I just stepped on it first¡¯. She didn¡¯t say anything more after that, her remaining energy emptied, the conversation over. Neither did Velvet, taking a step closer and pressing the tip of Sinoe¡¯s Baslard against Vina¡¯s forehead. ¡°Goodbye.¡± Stab. There was no resistance, no struggle and no opposition. Only resignation. Velvet moved to the next face. Stab. And the next. Stab. Some did weep, some half attempted to curse at her, some begged for her to leave them alive for a few minutes more. Yet she ignored them. The flesh ring as a whole was powering Frenese. If she wanted to stop and seal him back, she couldn¡¯t afford hesitation. Even if her Esca became so tainted with blood that no mage would approach her. Stab. Stab. Stab. Stab. Stab. Stab. Stab. Stab. Stab. Stab. The flesh ring fell to the ground. No longer struggling. No longer alive. Blood dripped from her hands, from her face and from her dress. But she ignored it, walking towards the open book. A chalice was under it, blood seeping from its edges, overfilled. Frenese¡¯s book was made of some texture soft to the touch, resembling short, dense hair. Under the hair, there was skin. When she touched the hairs, they moved, the book trembling slightly. The pages depicted a mixture of sigils and formations, some of them being the ones who previously siphoned Frenese¡¯s blood, still glistening red. The book was a devil¡¯s prison, not a grimoire. If text was what she wanted, she wouldn¡¯t find it here. She tried to close the book using her hands. It didn¡¯t budge. Of course it wouldn¡¯t be that easy. Wrapping her chain around the book, she started pulling again. Using all the magic force she could manage only made the borders nudge. She had a list of plans to try. It wasn¡¯t a matter of if the book was going to close, but of when. Velvet knelt down, reaching for the chalice, lifting the heavy, bloody cup to her mouth with both hands, feeling the sharp edges prickling at her gloves and her lips. And drank. The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. The metallic, salty warm liquid ran through her throat, leaving a burning itch behind. She wanted to puke, her disgust towards food had not disappeared, making the act feel even worse. But she raised the cup again, taking another gulp. The chalice had enough blood for fourteen mages, which was more than what Velvet could safely consume. So, once she was sure the next gulp would make her puke, she stopped drinking, and, instead, dropped the remaining contents over her head and body, before tossing the chalice aside. Even if her insides couldn¡¯t take anymore, her outsides could, and every single help she could get was welcome. She wasn¡¯t picky, not now. Velvet felt her strength increasing, her movements becoming faster and her magic potency expanding. She tried to close the book again. This time, the book edges started to close on each other. Slowly, but closing nonetheless. But the chains didn¡¯t hold on. At first the links started to stretch, a scraping, pressured noise coming from them, until they snapped. Due to her devil¡¯s blood intake, Velvet jumped back in time, preventing a stray piece of metal from stabbing her. She no longer had a material chain. And that was the end of her safe plans. Now she had to go for the dangerous ones. She took a deep breath, steading her resolve. With a click, she separated the space-leaping toad, the fire salamander, the bomber frog and the Strangler Humming Figs¡¯ containers from the rest. She then opened the three amphibian¡¯s containers, deploying their lakes one on top of another, combining them. Taking a deep breath, she used the dream charms on herself, falling asleep. ¡­ The empty darkness, the void around her was somewhat comforting now. The lack of smells, of the taste of blood in her mouth, of the gurgling sounds of the gut-like maze¡­ ¡°Come out. I don¡¯t have time to try to make you appear, and I don¡¯t know your name. But¡­¡± ¡°You said you were the chains, right?¡± Some of the darkness moved, and some shadow-like hands extended from the void, trying to reach her. Except that, this time, Velvet reached from them first, grabbing one. The last time she touched those, maggots had crawled from inside her skin, which only meant one thing. She could bring parts of the chains out from the dream. Just in an incomplete way, but all that was because she was weak, not because it was impossible. And if she broke her limits, she could manage to pull the chains out. The hand she had grabbed from the wrist twisted, grabbing her own wrist too. ¡°Good, we won¡¯t separate now.¡± Tightening her hold, she screamed the next words. ¡°Andras Apolyon!¡± Everything went red, a sharp pain in her head causing the dream to shatter. ¡­ Velvet woke up screaming, her skin falling apart in pages. This time it was worse than before, her head opening like a book, ink splattering in all directions. But she had grabbed something. She pulled, watching how, from the center of her chest, which now was a mess of fluttering pages, her hand was dragging out a chain. Ink dripped from it, tainting the original color, but it didn¡¯t matter. She forcefully pulled more of the chain out, wrapping it around the book. This time it was closing, the chains unwavering. A presence made itself felt behind Velvet. The miasma. The corruption. It wanted to speak to her, to tell her the secrets of everything, the answers to all her questions. Then, she threw the Strangler Humming Figs away, crashing the ball against the wall in front. Smash! The container broke, the contents inside being freed, the two trees towering over the maze. Sensing the hostility in the air, the trees started to sing. Stumbling around, Velvet steadied herself against the book, her head hurting as if it was splitting apart. But that feeling was what she wanted. Now, the voice of corruption could barely be heard anymore. And, if it could, the pain made her unable to understand anything. Clenching her paper hands with all her force, Velvet pulled the book towards her, both of them falling into the lake. Hugging it tightly, she kept on checking its state. Close dammit! Just close already! A gap was all that remained. And then nothing. The book was closed. Now her corruption was the last obstacle. Deep in the lake, Velvet chained herself to the bottom, and forced her Esca open. The pages forming her body shook, the black, rotten substance coming out in a neverending mist. Velvet struggled, the air in her lungs progressively leaving, her sight blurring. But, every time she was close to fainting, Hyde used the awakening charms on her. Forcing her to remain conscious. That was part of her plan. She coughed, feeling the water invade her throat, nostrils and lungs, making her gag and choke. Even so, she was unable to faint. Until her body stopped expelling miasma, until the corruption started to recede. The wait was long, the kind of long who ignores the normal passage of time. But it ended, and, once it did, Hyde used the earring to reduce her body weight to the minimum, making her slowly float to the surface. Once there, she coughed, gasped and puked water, her vision darkening. Crawling onto the shore, she flopped down, only half her body out of the water. Thud! With a hit, the book, which she had been holding onto all this time, fell from her arms. Closed. Sealed. Velvet wanted to laugh, but only managed a whimper, her body finally giving up. Everything went dark, and she fainted. Chapter 90. Aftermath Velvet was calm and comfy, enveloped in soft, warm sheets. She was finally home, far away from all that madne- Flip. A rather annoying sound broke her perfect rest. Now, who- Flip. Flip. Crunch. Of course. Only Celia would read and eat in her bed in the middle of the night. That damn brat. Flip. ¡°Put that shit back, or else.¡± She warned between her teeth. How dare she interrupt her totally deserved dream? Kids those days, zero empathy. ¡°Wha-!¡± Thud! Celia threw her book to the floor, surprised. Velvet rolled around to face her, ready to scold the hell out of- Creftalia. ¡°Um¡­¡± Both of them stared at each other in silence. Creftalia was leaning over her bed¡¯s edge, trying to grab her fallen book, while Velvet was glaring at her with hostile intentions. Her drowsy state gone, Velvet called her paper figurines, ready to attack. But none came. Right, they got all destroyed in the Arena. She searched for her knife next. It was also nowhere to be found. All her things were gone. ¡°Wait, wait!¡± Creftalia panicked, seeing how Velvet was determined to simply throw hands against her (Velvet was confident in her possibilities to just beat Creftalia unarmed). ¡°We are in the Mergifari¡¯s hospital! Fighting is not allowed!¡± Velvet squinted at her in silence, before looking around. Eight beds on each side, with curtains separating each one, all of them white. Both Creftalia and her were dressed in plain, simple hospital clothes, which consisted of a short sleeved shirt and loose pants. ¡°Why did you open my curtain?¡± Velvet asked. Of all the curtains, only the one separating them was open. Also, they were the only people in the room. ¡°Do you swing that way?¡± ¡°I do not!¡± ¡°Really now?¡± ¡°W-well, I never thought about it¡­ Stop!¡± Creftalia shook her head. ¡°I was just helping the nurses in monitoring your condition!¡± Velvet looked at Creftalia¡¯s bed. Books, magazines and snacks surrounded her, the sheets full of crumbs. ¡°Is that so? You look like a slacker who found an excuse to slack off.¡± ¡°I-I did not! I¡¯m just recovering from¡­ wounds? Oh, and corruption too¡­¡± Creftalia tried to explain herself, but every time she stopped speaking, Velvet moved slightly, getting up from her bed and towards her. You¡¯re doing that on purpose¡­ Creftalia whined. Instead of incorporating in one movement, Velvet was doing it slowly, wanting to scare her. And it was working. ¡°¡®The Galant Fuath and the Knighty Princess¡¯.¡± Velvet read out loud the book¡¯s title in Creftalia¡¯s hands. ¡°An interspecies romance.¡± She looked at some other books in the bed. ¡°¡®A werewolf¡¯s hand in marriage¡¯, ¡®Sharing bed with a dragon¡¯.¡± ¡°Stop!¡± Creftalia rushed to hide her books, even when both of them knew how useless that was. ¡°Aren¡¯t you glad I found the source of your corruption? ¡®The hydra¡¯s mistress¡¯.¡± ¡°I¡¯m really sick! Cough! Cough! Cough!¡± Creftalia lied. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. ¡°You know? Back where I¡¯m from, the kids liked to pretend to be sick to get away from work. At least until they had to eat some of my Get-well-soon-soup.¡± Velvet grinned. ¡°Now, it was an amazing soup! Just the smell cured slackery!¡± Creftalia laughed nervously. ¡°W-what about the ones who were really sick?¡± ¡°Oh, once they drank it, they were perfectly healed by the next day!¡± Velvet had finished sitting on her bed. She could now jump at Creftalia any time. She wasn¡¯t going to, but Creftalia didn¡¯t need to know that. ¡°Sounds like a potion¡­ Did it taste bad?¡± ¡°I never found out.¡± Velvet shrugged. ¡°When I felt like I was getting sick, I simply made enough normal soup for two days.¡± She finally got up, feeling her body stiff. ¡°How long was I asleep?¡± ¡°Three days¡­ Your soul was damaged, and your Esca too.¡± Creftalia started rolling one of her low braids between her fingers. The braid looked tangled and unkempt, showcasing how much the girl had slacked off. ¡°Sometimes you were close to losing control, your skin opening like a book.¡± Three whole days¡­ Velvet thought, grimacing. How much had she missed? ¡°What happened after the devil got sealed? You better not have slacked so much you know nothing.¡± She put her hands on her waist, giving Creftalia a stern gaze. ¡°I-I haven¡¯t¡­¡± Creftalia rolled her braid harder, sweating a bit. ¡°After the devil was gone, the Director and others showed up, cleaned the pocket dimension, took the wounded mages, and then¡­¡± ¡°And then?¡± ¡°Told us to continue.¡± Talk about merciless. ¡°What about my group? Tell me the positions of the people I know.¡± Since Creftalia was giving such lazy answers, Velvet just asked more. ¡°They were with me when the red mist appeared in the distance. Luckily, we were far away, so it didn¡¯t get us¡­ Um¡­ Syon got number two, Drifa three, Skugol four, I¡¯m at twenty-six, and you¡¯re twenty-seven.¡± Did you really get clapped just after me? ¡°Who is number one?¡± She kind of knew the answer. ¡°Dianthus.¡± Made sense, the guy simply didn¡¯t go down. ¡°How many positions are in the end?¡± It was a way of asking how many people got killed, from the 156 participating mages. ¡°Eighty-four.¡± Seventy-two mages died. Almost half of them. Velvet took a deep breath. Now, the last question. ¡°What positions do Gertine Doyle and Nereus hold?¡± She saw Creftalia looking down, refusing to meet her gaze. ¡°Gertine is thirty-five.¡± ¡°And Nereus?¡± Creftalia fell silent, taking a deep, shaky breath. ¡°H-he, and every other mage from the Gluttony Paradigm or adjacents went insane.¡± Mages could find the pocket dimensions of demons who shared their Paradigm due to attraction. That meant that the presence of a gluttony devil not only affected them the most, but also provoked different behavior in them in relation to mages from Paradigms not related to gluttony. Creftalia pressed her lips, her body slightly shaking. ¡°When the Director found him, he had killed four mages, and was eating the fifth.¡± ¡°N-Nereus is now in the mental ward, together with the other gluttony mages.¡± Velvet stood in silence for a few moments, before speaking softly. ¡°Is it possible to see him?¡± Creftalia nodded slowly. She didn¡¯t want to go there, but Nereus was her companion, and he deserved that at least. ¡­ The mental ward was under the hospital, being part of the edifice. Velvet and Creftalia walked through the aisle, between doors and doors, all of them locked and reinforced with charms and formation spells. No sound came from any of the doors, and the only noise was the occasional nurse strolling around, or some visitors like them. ¡°This one.¡± Creftalia stopped in front of a door labeled ¡®134 C¡¯. ¡°Nereus is inside.¡± Velvet got closer, slowly but determined, and looked through the small window. A person was inside. She recognized the unruly, savage black hair. Nereus was inside, walking around the room back and forth without stopping, over and over. He touched the cushioned walls with one hand, constantly dragging it around. He was wearing a plain white shirt with short sleeves, and loose pants. In his arms, Velvet saw bandages, not knowing if the wounds they were covering were self inflicted or not. In his mouth, a black, iron muzzle was placed. And, in his hands, some cushioned gloves sealed them. Velvet looked at him for a while. Nereus didn¡¯t stop walking from side to side at any moment, his eyes always fixed on the wall. Letting out a sigh, she let go of the window, caressing the door. ¡°Is recovery possible?¡± Creftalia bit her lip. ¡°The nurses said it will take time. From five to ten years, and it might never fully heal.¡± Velvet fell silent again, lost in thought. ¡°Velvet.¡± Creftalia said, fidgeting uncomfortably, pulling out two black small balls. ¡°I¡­ I have the containers with Navros and Mars. I can give them to you, if you want them.¡± Nereus¡¯ familiars. Velvet shook her head. ¡°I don¡¯t want them. They will be more safe with you anyway.¡± She still didn¡¯t know her state before the eyes of the official mages. Even if they didn¡¯t see her sealing the book, they could connect the dots with ease. And she wanted to prevent dragging anyone else down with her. Chapter 91. Self fulfilling, or what will become of us Once they got out from the mental ward, they went back to the patient¡¯s bedrooms, waiting for the nurses to make Velvet a final checkup. Creftalia remained in the room for a while, until Velvet¡¯s silence got too much to bear, and she excused herself, saying she was feeling better and was going back to the others. Velvet didn¡¯t answer, lost in thought. The nurse¡¯s checkup had made her notice something. First, Hyde had moved his pocket dimension to her ear. A good thing, since her hat and clothes were gone. She notified him of her awakening, but Hyde seemed to be busy or sleeping, not giving her an answer. She didn¡¯t worry too much though, feeling him alive. Second, killing Vina and the others had consequences. She hadn¡¯t noticed at first, blaming it on Creftalia¡¯s jumpy behavior, but mages and nurses avoided her. When they walked down the hallways, people moved thoughtlessly out of her proximity, avoiding getting close. Kartal had mentioned it, calling it cross-corruption. The ailment of a blood-soaked Esca. And third, her blood-soaked Esca in question had opened more. Now it was half open. She had reached Cornelius¡¯ and Iren Doyle¡¯s level. No, that comparison was incorrect. Velvet was sure she had surpassed them. Not that it mattered in the grand scheme of things, but it was something. She could now summon twenty paper figurines, and their reach had extended to five hundred meters. Not only that, the figurines had obtained a new ability: ¡®Comprehension Display¡¯. Any magic skill she had previously seen, could be copied in a figurine. It was still affected by the potency loss from diverging Paradigms, but now she didn¡¯t need to know the whole process behind it. As long as she had knowledge about what the spell did, it could be copied in a figurine. For example: Igern¡¯s ice weapons. She knew what they did, but didn¡¯t know the spell. But now, she could convert one paper figurine into an ice sword at any time. Same with any other spell she had knowledge of. Another new ability was: ¡®Wayback record¡¯. She had seen that one used by other mages, and she herself had used the weakest version of it to ¡®discover¡¯ Iren Doyle¡¯s murderer. By looking at the aftermath of a spell, murder, formation¡­ She could know how they came to be. For example: the wraith left by Agorn Krischa. Now, she knew how it was made, and the torture methods and spells used on it. She could now make a wraith herself. Not that she was going to, but she could. She also got an increase in the potency of her charms, but that was normal. Steps coming towards the room she was in caught her attention. Checking the sound, she uncovered the person¡¯s stature, weight and mannerisms. Ceres opened the door, not bothering to knock. ¡°Coming to pick me up? Were you forced to?¡± Velvet greeted him, sitting on the bed¡¯s edge. Ceres sighed. ¡°For better or worse, and, in case you¡¯ve forgotten, I¡¯m your Selector, not Kartal.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t forget stuff. Did you bring me a change of clothes? What about my things?¡± She started pestering him upon seeing the paper bag he was carrying. ¡°Yes, yes, where are your manners? Quit poking me.¡± Ceres gave her the bag. Velvet looked inside: a plain beige dress, some underwear, a white hose and short boots for dressing. Her containers were also inside, and- ¡°Go change first, if any garment is not the right size, blame Tristan.¡± Velvet stared at him in silence. Ceres stared back at her. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Get out?¡± Ceres blinked. ¡°True.¡± He then stepped out and closed the door, letting Velvet change. ¡­ Velvet opened the door to the corridor, now dressed, and watched Ceres in silence, who was leaning against the opposing wall. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t have stopped me from checking the containers unless something weird was inside them.¡± ¡°Guess.¡± Velvet brazed herself, and started checking the containers: Agorn¡¯s former pets, the feathered spider, the fire salamander- ¡°Huh,¡± She said, seeing the three pets she pulled out back inside a container. ¡°I thought they ran away.¡± ¡°They did, but escaping a pocket dimension isn¡¯t easy. They simply got caught again.¡± Velvet imagined the official mages running behind the Space-leaping toad, just for it to teleport. Probably they simply used magic, but she hoped the toad made them work. Next, the Strangler Humming Figs. Just glimpsing at them made Velvet¡¯s head hurt, remembering their song, but she didn¡¯t need to look at them too much to see the mutation they suffered. Their branches had become red, and, every now and then, something wormed its way under the tree bark, its appearance similar to Frenese¡¯s leech-like tendrils. And, in the last container, was Frenese¡¯s Book. Velvet paled, her blood running cold. Why was it here? Why was Ceres giving it to her? ¡°Why¡­ why is the book here?¡± Scratching his head, he spoke. ¡°After hours of finger-pointing and shifting blame, the only thing those idiots agreed on was that the book couldn¡¯t go back to the Tarius. But everyone wanted it, and also wanted no one else to have it.¡± Ceres paused, letting Velvet make her own conclusions. ¡°In the end, the Director decided that the one who sealed it was the new owner. And none of them dared to argue against her choice.¡± Velvet kept looking at the book. ¡°This is going to make me a target.¡± She muttered, her brain working on a solution. ¡°Can I rent it to the Mergifari? I won¡¯t ask for much money.¡± She didn¡¯t want to sell it, but if she rented it, Frenese¡¯s Book could be kept in the Mergifari¡¯s treasury, not bringing unwanted attention towards her. Ceres clicked his tongue. ¡°I don¡¯t recommend doing that. Ha- Wait. Udulluay.¡± He called for the owl, who appeared from the walls, landing on Ceres¡¯ head. The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Velvet flinched, wary. She knew Udulluay wasn¡¯t Frenese, but both were devils. Alas, Ceres needed him to conceal the traces of their conversation. ¡°You¡¯re going to make me bald, I swear.¡± Holding the owl like a sandwich, he continued. ¡°Hasdrubal wanted to check the book at all costs. And not for the devil.¡± The chains. Velvet had noticed them, tightly wrapped around the book, pitch dark in color. No, that wasn¡¯t correct. It¡¯s not that the chains were black, but that they were¡­ empty. Devoid of material, the light inside the container didn¡¯t affect them, it just disappeared. Gone. Velvet pressed her lips. ¡°I cannot keep the book. Someone tried to kill me just for teaming up with Kartal, imagine what would happen if I kept it. I wouldn¡¯t be able to fall asleep.¡± ¡°You¡¯re thinking about it from the wrong angle.¡± Ceres said. ¡°What did I say? These big fools not only didn¡¯t want the Tarius from having the book, they also didn¡¯t accept anyone except themselves as the new owner.¡± Velvet smiled, an incredulous, frantic smile. ¡°Y-you cannot be for real.¡± Ceres¡¯ plan is fucking insane! Velvet shouted in her mind. Does he want me to willingly be targeted by everyone?! And just hope that their pride and greed benefits me? ¡°...¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Will¡­ will that work?¡± ¡°Guess.¡± ¡°Ceres¡­¡± Velvet sighed. ¡°It won¡¯t work forever. I''ll give it two months at maximum.¡± He admitted, uninterested in giving false hope to her. ¡°And after that, what?¡± ¡°Leave the Mergifari. Use the time you have to learn anti-tracking and concealment spells, then disappear from here. Don¡¯t come back until you have at least two Escas.¡± Velvet stared at him in silence. She didn¡¯t like that plan, but she really didn¡¯t have alternatives. Giving Frenese¡¯s book to the Mergifari would withdraw the attention over her, but Hasdrubal might pay her a ¡®visit¡¯. Keeping the book would make the enemy mages fall in a standstill, but, if she slipped, she might get caught. Leaving the Mergifari right now would leave her defenseless, and any mage could simply follow her outside. Ceres'' plan was dangerous, but was the less dangerous one. ¡°Alright.¡± She said with resignation. ¡­ Dianthus pressed his head against his bed''s soft cushions. He had won. Not only first place in the Opening, but against the prophecy too. Some mages had died, but it was inevitable. "Was it now? Really?" The voice accompanying him said. "Hm? What do you¡­ Wait. When did you get back?" He hadn''t heard the voice after dreaming the prophecy, and he hadn''t called for it. Why didn''t I¡­? No, he simply hadn''t noticed the voice was gone. Not until it now. Oh no. "So you realized now?" No no no no. Like an invisible fog being lifted, he started to think. To really think. Those deaths were evitable. He didn''t need a reason to ''accidentally'' encounter some Idir mages and beat them before they summoned shit. He could''ve prevented all of that in ten minutes. Why did he search for Velvet...? A bad, bad feeling crept over his back. "Where were you? Why didn''t I realize you were gone?" The voice had been with him almost all his life. How could he not notice its absence? A sigh crossed his mind. "Didn¡¯t I warn you? Or do you just assume that because He didn¡¯t do anything, He hadn¡¯t done anything?" ¡°I am immune to mind control.¡± ¡°And yet, you forgot my whole existence.¡± Dianthus clicked his tongue, forcing himself to remember when he started to forget. The night before the Opening? No, the truth was that the same moment the prophecy started, he forgot. The moment Lothrigern kicked Velvet out¡­ For some reason, he got so obsessed with it, wanting to test if Lothrigern would react in some way if he were to mess up his plans. Unfortunately, Dianthus trying to mess up his plan was Lothrigern''s ''plan''. ¡°Yes, that exact moment. You thought about him, and he showed up in your dream. The one you saw was the real deal, even if just for a moment.¡± ¡°Can he do that?¡± ¡°You should feel lucky that he can''t show up in your mind just by thinking of His name.¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t you warn me?¡± ¡°Because he barely touched you. What he actually did was use you as a bridge to get me. All the time you spent devil-hunting with that girl, Lothrigern was chasing my true body.¡± Dianthus fell silent. He had been used like an idiot, without even realizing it. ¡°Didn¡¯t you want to poke the psychopathic father of the fae? So? How does it feel?¡± The voice provoked him, mocking his previous prideful demeanor. ¡°What about Velvet? She got it pretty nice, for someone marked by him.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be so sure. No one Lothrigern sets his eyes upon has a good ending.¡± The voice sighed, before correcting himself. ¡°No. That¡¯s wrong. The longer Lothrigern remains just waiting, the more sure I become about that girl not having a problem.¡± ¡°And, instead, being a problem in the making.¡± ¡­ Velvet was back in her hut, the first thing she did being: throwing herself on the bed, face down. "You slept for three whole days, don''t fall asleep again." Hyde said. He had gone back from his ''slumber'', and made a more in depth description of what happened after the Opening. From Creftalia¡¯s and Ceres¡¯ information, she still lacked to know what happened during the time she lost consciousness and before the Director showed up. For example, the formation under Frenese''s formation. The one she didn''t have time to dig. If the official mages ''cleaned'' up the scene, surely they saw it. "Someone came before the Mergifari''s Director." Hyde said. "They used a concealment spell, so I don''t know their appearance. But they dug out part of the formation. The center, actually." Frenese''s book was impossible to open with just the energy of fourteen novice mages. That meant the magic used had come from another place. The underfloor formation probably had a core, a core used to supply magic. "Don''t beat yourself over not having found out. The formation center was filled with traps, I saw the person removing them, and we didn''t have the time to undo them back then." "What was the core?" She asked, not interested in blaming herself. She did all she could have possibly done. "I don''t know what it was with precision, but it looked like a human, dead premature baby with horns. It felt demonic, but also human." Velvet pressed her lips. "A mage''s failed experiment? Even if dead, a human and demon baby hybrid could..." She didn''t finish the sentence. Be useful as material was what she almost said. With an exasperated sigh, Velvet sat up. "It''s not fair. How can someone defend themselves against mages with zero scruples? No, you know what? I can do so too." She got up and jumped, shaking the sadness out of her. "Udulluay." The devil owl appeared, landing on top of the black staff he always summoned when Ceres wasn''t close. "You called for Udulluay?¡± "Can you stay around a few minutes?" "Udulluay can." "Thanks." Velvet said, before touching her string of containers. With a thud, Frenese''s Book fell on her bed, chained. Velvet took a deep breath, before moving her hands to touch the chains. Originally, the chains wrapped the book to completion, not letting a single hair out. But, once Velvet touched them, the chains moved away, allowing her to touch the covers. Like when she talked with Hyde, she pushed some thoughts inside. "Frenese. I know you can hear me." She did not, but the devil didn''t need to know that. "How many years have you been sealed? One hundred? Two hundred? It doesn''t matter." "I''m offering you a deal. Fulfill it, and I''ll let you return to hell, free." End of Book I. Surface Collapse. Chapter 92. A Devils Deal Back in her hut, Velvet waited. She had bravely poked the devil, offering him freedom in exchange for a deal, but now what? What if Frenese simply refused to answer? What if she hadn¡¯t managed to avoid the chains, and was speaking to the cover? She waited a while longer, until, eventually, when she was about to just give up, a voice sounding both familiar and strange spoke. The voice was familiar because it was hers, and was strange because it was hers. ¡°You didn''t refuse to keep my prison. Human, you covet power.¡± Velvet noticed the double meaning. Yes, Frenese was calling her greedy, but also was implying that the deal she was offering was useless. After all, who will simply release an imprisoned devil? If demons sold for millions of auris, the price of devils was unthinkable. Velvet could ask for anything she desired, no matter how expensive, unique or secret it was, and mages would rush to give it to her. ¡°Yes, you¡¯re right. I need power and need it fast. Doesn¡¯t that work great for you? A desperate mage; devils and demon¡¯s favorite snack.¡± She didn¡¯t try to lie. Hyde had told her that demons sensed weakness and troubles, using that skill to make unfair deals, so she didn¡¯t imagine what a devil could sense. She was already offering freedom to Frenese. Worse deals could hardly be made. ¡°Corpses don¡¯t fulfill deals.¡± Frenese replied, using Velvet¡¯s voice. ¡°And mages who loot corpses don¡¯t give freedom. Seems like me staying alive falls under our mutual interest.¡± She talked back, trying to make Frenese at least consider the option of a deal. Frenese sighed, resembling Velvet when she scolded the kids back at Casrey¡¯s orphanage. Don¡¯t you have any other voices? Dianthus¡¯ for example? On second thought, not his. ¡°What does your human despair entail?¡± Was¡­ was Frenese asking about her problems? Maybe he is waging whenever this conversation is worth maintaining, and that I¡¯m not simply gonna get killed tomorrow. ¡°The spell I used to seal you made me attract unwanted attention, and keeping you made me attract another type of unwanted attention. I have less than two months to get enough resources to escape the Mergifari untracked.¡± ¡°Those chains are not a spell.¡± Frenese corrected, before making a ¡®Hm¡¯ noise. ¡°I¡¯ll hear your offer.¡± Velvet almost jumped when Frenese agreed to hear her out. ¡°Be my familiar for a year.¡± ¡°No.¡± Frenese shot her down instantly, so she was up to a bad start. ¡°Why not? A year cannot be compared to three hundred¡­¡± ¡°Six hundred.¡± For such a gluttonous devil, he didn¡¯t seem to like it when Velvet said facts wrong. ¡°Doesn¡¯t that support my offer? What¡¯s a year against six hundred?¡± Frenese scoffed, and, this time, Velvet could hear the devil¡¯s real voice behind her own. ¡°Only low ranked demons offer themselves as familiars.¡± To be honest, Velvet had almost guessed that on her own. She knew Hyde was weak, being the first demon she crossed on Ars Cryses¡¯ hell. And the one she ate, Siberina¡¯s familiar, was also relatively weak and small. None of those compared themselves to the crocodile demon who escaped the Mergifari¡¯s market, killing almost half the action¡¯s participants on its way. This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it Demons had a clear hierarchy, not by size, since Udulluay was in the smaller scale (unless all his bodies counted, then her opinion might change), and only the ones at the bottom of the barrel, or the ones at the most surface level of hell, had any interest in becoming mages¡¯ familiars. ¡°Alright, forget that. Ten wishes. Fulfill ten wishes of mine and you¡¯ll be free.¡± Velvet offered her second choice. ¡°I think you are mistaking what I am. I¡¯m no trapped genie.¡± Mages really liked to seal things, didn¡¯t they? ¡°Petitions, it was a figure of speech. I meant ten petitions.¡± Velvet corrected herself again, under Frenese¡¯s nitpicky personality. He wasn¡¯t that picky eating. ¡°And, before you say I can simply stall the wishes for eternity, the time limit of those wishes is two years. No tricks. From either side.¡± Frenese fell silent, the deal not being anything too exaggerated. Even so, he changed the offer. ¡°One year. Ten petitions.¡± Before Velvet could complain, he continued. ¡°You might not survive two years.¡± Taking a deep breath, she didn¡¯t refute him. ¡°Alright. It¡¯s a deal.¡± Even when she said that, they still spent several hours detailing the deal¡¯s contents. None of them trusted the other, so they ended up making clauses for every little detail. The important ones were the ones preventing Frenese from ¡®curling the monkey¡¯s paw¡¯ over Velvet. Every petition was under the demands of the situation Velvet wanted to deal with, and not of free understanding. None of the petitions could endanger Frenese¡¯s or Velvet¡¯s lives. A petition couldn¡¯t be used to ask for more petitions. Petitions had to be confirmed as petitions, and any random comment from Velvet couldn¡¯t be considered one. If any petitions remained unclaimed once the year ended, they would be traded for high-tier knowledge. And, the last one: once the year ended, Velvet had to open a portal to Frenese¡¯s hell, using the summoning ritual he provided, and release him. The summoning ritual and the following release of Frenese could not harm Velvet in any way, including dragging her to hell, curses¡­ If any harm came to her during that time, Frenese would die. Velvet would die too if she refused to release Frenese once the deal was fulfilled, unless the current circumstances at that moment made the summon impossible, and, in that case, the summoning would wait until the danger had passed. Once they were satisfied with the full contract, Velvet repeated the chant she had made with Baraviodos on the train. ¡°Frenese.¡± First, recite the devil¡¯s name. ¡°I¡± ¡°Offer this deal under Andras Apolyon.¡± Like the previous time, when Andra¡¯s name was spoken, the atmosphere changed, and she felt being watched. The string of information covering the Deal¡¯s content filled her mind, and she went over it in silence. ¡°Accept this deal under Andras Apolyon.¡± A sharp stabbing pain crossed her mind, times worse than when Baraviodos¡¯ Deal sealed in her. Her Esca trembled, and her whole arm did too, several strings of symbols shining over the skin covering her whole body in red light, before losing their momentum, disappearing progressively. The only remaining symbol was the two distorted A¡¯s, one normal and one inverted, almost forming a red star. Velvet opened and closed her hand in repeated motions, trying to recover her mobility and shook off the trembling. The Devil¡¯s Deal was sealed. She was now connected to Frenese, the devil who caused the death of seventy-two mages, and the insanity of fourteen. ¡°Now,¡± She started. ¡°Petition number one: How do I heal someone from the Predator Paradigm affected by your madness?¡± She wanted to heal Nereus, but also knew that finding the means might take time, so, the sooner she knew what she needed, the better. ¡°There¡¯s two options.¡± Frenese¡¯s stolen voice said. ¡°First, find a sphynx willing to treat them. They are located on the ruins of Ihilia.¡± Ihilia¡­ Almost on the other side of the world, the furthest away possible from the Mergifari, for not to say, the second continent more dangerous to explore. ¡°What¡¯s a sphynx?¡± She had never heard about that creature. ¡°Is that a petition?¡± ¡°No.¡± She could search for the correspondent information on the Mergifari¡¯s archives. ¡°Second, hunt and feed them the S?hr¨ªmnir, until their hunger is satiated.¡± She didn¡¯t know what the S?hr¨ªmnir was, but didn¡¯t ask, knowing what Frenese would say. ¡°You can find it deep inside the Mergifari¡¯s Unnamed Forest.¡± Behind the barrier. Behind the barrier from where the members of the tragic gathering had captured the demonic crocodile. Behind the barrier which hadn¡¯t fallen for hundreds and hundreds of years, where only official mages were allowed entrance. Also, Frenese used ¡®the¡¯ to refer to the creature. Was it only one specimen? Chapter 93. Infamy Both of those options proved Velvet¡¯s previous guess. She wouldn¡¯t be able to treat Nereus soon, and definitely not in the two months she had. But, it was a lead, and, where there is a lead, there is a path. Even if it still couldn¡¯t be seen. Velvet got up from her bed, stored Frenese¡¯s Book and dusted off her dress. Looking at Udulluay, the owl had gotten comfortable on the staff, and had his eyes closed. She debated whether or not to notify him that she didn¡¯t need his presence anymore, or just let him there. For a devil, he really acts more as a magical pet¡­ Udulluay opened his eyes slightly, and, just as Velvet was going to open her mouth, an explosion sounded, shaking the hut. Like the previous time, it had come from the barrier. Is Nebura testing that box again? Hm. Velvet schemed in silence, an idea forming in her mind. ¡°I¡¯ll go check.¡± She told Udulluay, even when she didn¡¯t need to, since he, as a hivemind, already knew what had happened. Velvet inspected her things: Sinoe¡¯s Baslard was buried, the time for using it up, needing to recharge; Syon¡¯s gifts, the earring and the umbrella, were fine, and her money had increased by 10500 auris. Ten thousand were Kartal¡¯s compensation for the Syon mission, and 500 were from ending the Arena at the position twenty-seven. Ceres had simply thrown all her money together, and just let her figure it out. The 500 auris were part of the monthly benefits from the Mergifari towards mages with High Tier rank. Velvet had no need to worry about that now, so she pushed those thoughts back, pulling out one of her enhanced paper sheets. She held it, waiting as the sheet bloomed, converting into paper figurines. I can do the conversion spell faster now. The time has been reduced by half. The twenty newly-born figurines flickered around like confetti for a few moments, before going back inside her body, awaiting for orders. Putting on her hat, Velvet went out, towards the barrier. ¡­ Nebura calibrated the artifact, tinkering with the box¡¯s levers, adjusting them based on the barrier¡¯s reaction to the explosion. She was more than halfway done, a month or so and she will be finish- Something was wrong. Nebura lifted her head from the box, the sensation of something watching her not disappearing. She looked to the sides, up, down, turned around- ¡°Shit!¡± She jumped, seeing an orange spot not too far away from her. It was Velvet, staring at her motionless and in silence, like a creepy little thing from behind the woods. The hell is your problem?! She wanted to shout, but calmed herself down, not wanting to get into a discussion. Conversation with Velvet were just a quick way for someone to get pissed, and usually the other person was the one ending mo- A paper figurine teleported right above her head. Shit! Nebura repeated. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. Boom! Quickly, she made a mercury wall over her, preventing the explosion from blowing her head. Even so, she fell down due to the force. ¡°Oh, mercury. So that¡¯s the metal you picked. Like water, always adjusting its form after containers given by others.¡± Velvet said, using her infuriating, softly mocking tone. ¡°The hell is your problem!?¡± In the end, Nebura ended up shouting her previous thoughts, rising up to her feet, pissed. ¡°Hm? Oh, trueee¡­ Maybe I should¡¯ve warned you first. Oh well.¡± Velvet laughed, as if not understanding why Nebura was angry. ¡°The box. Gimme.¡± ¡°What?¡± Taking a step back, she glared at her. ¡°The box?¡± Sighing dramatically, Velvet took a step to the right, tilted her body to the right, looked her up and down, took two steps to the left, tilted her body to the left and repeated the motions. ¡°For what I see¡­ you only have one box, sooo¡­ The box does indeed refer to that box.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t be for real.¡± Nebura moved her mercury around, threatening her. ¡°Well then!¡± Velvet clapped once. A figurine flickered left to Nebura, just before exploding. Nebura covered her left side with mercury, protecting herself. A figurine appeared in her right, and exploded again! Nebura pulled out a door, which creaked open, swallowing the explosion. The hair at the back of her head rose, the barrier too close to her. Velvet was pushing her towards it, blocking any attempt to escape. ¡°Have you gone insane?!¡± She tried to reason with her. Velvet raised her hands, before joining her index fingers, tracing a square in the air. Nebura clenched her teeth, cursing in silence. ¡°Do you- Do you think you can attack a follower of Arhontissa without consequences?¡± Velvet smiled at her, with a mix of pity and mockery. ¡°We both know no one will come.¡± Nebura was confident she could take Velvet in a fight. She had more experience, and had been longer on the Mergifari, and yet¡­ She had not seen what happened during this year''s Opening, the only ones with the authority to watch it being the official mages, but she had heard chunks and pieces of what had conspired. The official mages even commented on separating this year''s Selected between ¡®Pre-Frenese¡¯ and ¡®Post-Frenese¡¯, based on whether they were eliminated before the devil showed up or not. Nebura had only peeked at the list out of curiosity, but knew Velvet was Post-Frenese, and not only that, she was a High Ranked mage. And to add, Velvet was acting like she wanted to kill her. Another paper figurine flickered, but Nebura clicked her tongue. ¡°Stop!¡± Surrendering, she tossed the box artifact towards Velvet, who took a step back. Nebura almost panicked, believing Velvet was going to let the box fall to the ground and crash, but soon, a vine grew from the floor, catching the box. ¡°Oh, you should look at your face.¡± Velvet mocked her. ¡°Imagine if I just crushed it right now.¡± ¡°You better don¡¯t. Because I will get it back.¡± Nebura threatened her. She knew Velvet wouldn¡¯t break the box, not because she was merciful, but because she was curious. She had always been. ¡°Haha. Of course you will! Now, need me to escort you out of the woods, princess?¡± Nebura made a face of disgust, turning away. ¡°No.¡± Saying that, she left, uninterested in trying to ¡®negotiate¡¯ with her, leaving Velvet alone in the forest. Frenese¡¯s voice criticized her. ¡°Are you that keen on dying before our pact ends?¡± Velvet laughed. ¡°You don¡¯t understand, do you? When mages want your head, you cannot allow yourself to be unnoticeable. The moment you fall to the shadows, you become an afterthought. And I cannot allow myself to become an afterthought.¡± Her security depended on enough mages paying attention to her, so that their mere presence served as a deterrent to the others. To stand your ground in the middle of mages who want your head, you need to stay at the center of the stage. And the only show mages liked were the shows of power. ¡°You know? All the devil¡¯s blood I drank still isn¡¯t gone. I¡¯m going to squeeze it for all its worth for the remaining four days.¡± Her plan was already in motion. She needed to fight as many novice mages as she could before the devil¡¯s blood effect ran out, and ¡®comprehend¡¯ their spells, so that once the four days were over, she had built enough infamy to keep her momentum going. ¡°I¡¯ll make sure to crush my way to the stage¡¯s center, and I¡¯ll make it so that they can¡¯t take their eyes off me.¡± Chapter 94. Pioneer Frenese didn¡¯t answer her ramblings, but Hyde did. ¡°Should''ve picked the door artifact, it looked more useful.¡± Clicking her tongue, she defended herself. ¡°I wanted that one too, if I had known she had something like that, I would¡¯ve reconsidered my petition.¡± She actually wanted to fight her, using the devil¡¯s blood buff to overpower Nebura with ease, looting her like she did to Agorn, but Nebura folded and gave her the box, making her taunting useless. You can¡¯t always win¡­ She sighed, ordering the vine to turn the box, checking that Nebura hadn¡¯t installed any visible traps. Even if she had done so, Velvet wasn¡¯t planning on tinkering with it, having another scheme. She stored the box in a container, next to the other artifacts, and walked towards the towers, exiting the forest. It wasn¡¯t night yet, and she had a lot of work to do. ¡­ During the three days she had been out, the official shops had finally moved out of the market, and were now inside the Mergifari, who had suffered a full transformation. The almost empty, barebones streets were now filled with shops of all types, where official mages sold products or services. Of course, more often than not, the ones taking care of the shops weren¡¯t the official mages, but family members or the mage¡¯s own Selected. Some shops opened once others closed, due to a number of mages being nocturnal, so it didn¡¯t matter when Velvet wanted to shop, because there would always be some open. Some shops simply didn¡¯t close, and just cycled between supervising mages. Apart from the shops, a fourth tower had been ¡®transferred¡¯ from the market to the Mergifari. One that Velvet knew. The Arena. Well, it wasn¡¯t doing anything in the market anyway, since now it''s empty¡­ I want to be able to pack edifices too¡­ Doing something like that probably cost a lot of magic, and was done in a team, so it was better for her to temporarily forget about it. Same about the Arena. Even if she needed to beat up mages to gain presence, Velvet wanted some bigger benefit, and the Arena didn¡¯t allow looting the rivals after victory. She had won more from Agorn than from winning the first time with Alrai. Of course, the prizes would increase as her victories accumulated. But she only had four days, and wasn¡¯t going to spend them there. Taking her sights away from the tower, Velvet went to her first objective. The Institute. The edifice where official mages imparted classes for a price. The Mergifari didn¡¯t teach for free, and every official mage picked the class they wanted to teach, the length, the number of seats and the price. Some official mages taught for 50 auris, while some ranged the thousands. Here was where the second part of the Opening classifications mattered. Mages from rank 11 to 30 could pick five classes monthly free of cost, and the ones even higher, ten. Something that every novice mage shared was that the classes imparted by their Selector were free for them. This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Velvet didn¡¯t search for Ceres¡¯ class. She had some theory about his magic, but hadn¡¯t yet asked him about it. No. What she searched for was: Hasdrubal¡¯s class. She was a knowledge mage, and letting Hasdrubal remain in the unknown category wasn¡¯t good for her. So, before he went to find her, she would go find him. ¡­ In the Glacial sea, closest point to Agrana Base, Permafrost. Captain Sarcos¡¯ ship. Fermidia Sarcos, Captain of the Pioneer Three, one of the ships forming the Pioneer Fleet, the one designed and tasked with the Permafrost expedition, ongoing for one thousand, two hundred and thirty nine years. Current percentage of territory explored: eleven percent. Permafrost was the biggest continent, covering more than half the surface of the planet, while possessing one of the most unique environments on it. Namely, it allowed no life to bloom and prosper. No human life. No animal life. No plant life. No microorganic life. Nothing. Permafrost spared no one. The Zone Zero. Zone of survival zero. And every year, every day, Permafrost grew in size. And every year, their planet grew a little bit colder. The Snowbreak Project, the name given to the mission to stop Permafrost¡¯s advance. Captain Sarcos was at the ship¡¯s helm, navigating between the colossal ice walls. The walls, forcefully detonated on a previous exploration, creaked under their own weight, looming over the ship¡¯s crew, who remained on constant alert. No wind blew on Permafrost. It was only ice. Unmoving, uncaring ice. Neither rain nor storms approached the eternal calmness of the frozen continent. Fermidia exhaled a deep breath, which froze between creaks once it left the safety of her magically enhanced uniform, falling to the floor. Their mission consisted of locating the Agrana Base¡¯s members, who hadn¡¯t given signals of life from ten days ago. Not by radio, and not by magic. The Agrana Base was uncommunicable. As one of the deepest encampments on Permafrost, its worth was invaluable. Formed by thirty members, all of them scientists or trained mages, it was one of the camps who had discovered most of the information they possessed about Permafrost. The Pioneer Three lit up, activating the magic formation, melting the frost constantly creeping over it. Fermidia steered the ship, slowly crossing the mage-made river. Even when they had to hurry, the danger surrounding them was immense. A too intense wave, a lively conversation, and the ice walls would collapse, burying them in ice. They had been navigating nonstop, consuming potions and elixirs to not fall asleep. And they had almost reached the base. At least, that was what the map said. Fermidia slowed the ship even more, examining the surroundings. Not too far away, a harbor had been made, with a tower, the ice fighting to encase it, but being stopped by the formation every time. The protective formation works, so it wasn¡¯t a sudden loss of power. Fermidia gave the order, and the crew started getting ready to disembark, tying the Pioneer to the harbor. She got down once everything was set, walking towards the tower. Getting there, she unlocked it with the sigil only the captains and directors knew. She entered, closing the door behind her, activating the sound retention formation. ¡°Doctor Prana? Hello? It¡¯s Captain Fermidia Sarcos, from the Pioneer Three.¡± She walked through the tower; from the bedrooms, to the showers, to the control center, finding no one. One of the numerous rings she wore under her gloves vibrated intermittently, a message in morse code being sent. She answered as she exited the tower, going behind it. There, a narrow path went deeper, ending at a cave. One of her marines was there. And so were the Agrana Base members. Frozen, completely covered in ice, all of them in different postures. Wait, these positions¡­ Some were kneeling with their back straight, left hand closed over the heart, and the other reaching forward. Some were fully kneeling, their faces and hands touching the floor. Some had crossed their arms over their stomachs, lowering their heads¡­ They¡¯re praying. Fermidia noticed. And all of them prayed towards the same point. An ice wall, recently covered by the ice. Ice which still allowed part of what was inside to be seen. That being a statue. The statue was human looking, one of its hands reaching out to them. A neutral expression adorned its face, neither angry, nor happy. Long hair cascaded down its back, untied. Upon seeing it, Fermidia took a step back, averting her gaze. Humans weren¡¯t allowed to have statues. Only gods could. And that wasn¡¯t all. Once a god lost the Maquia and was killed, their sculptures were destroyed with them. Only living gods had full sculptures. Mirel, Arhontissa, Paraiso and Idir. And yet¡­ That sculpture wasn¡¯t of any of them, and it wasn¡¯t damaged. It also didn¡¯t belong to Dodon or Ihilia. Did Permafrost have a god? A living god? Most importantly. Even if Permafrost had a god, who made the statue? No life was allowed to prosper here. Chapter 95. That game you play, Ive seen it before Fermidia took a step back, blinking repeatedly. Once she didn''t feel anything wrong, she started giving instructions to her crew through the rings she wore. ¡°Start digging the statue out in teams of five, and switch every five minutes. Leave one meter of ice on each side. The members digging need to employ blurring glasses.¡± Blurring glasses were used to prevent the owner from reading things they shouldn¡¯t. Fermidia didn¡¯t know if the sculpture had any writings, but she wasn¡¯t going to find out. ¡°Once the statue is covered and sealed inside the Pioneer Three, we will retrieve the corpses. Standard anti-corruption procedure.¡± ¡°The ones not digging, collect the records and documents inside the Agrana Base. Don¡¯t read anything. Pack everything for delivery to the Mergifari.¡± ¡°Once everything is clean, refill the supplies and tell the substitutes they can move to the tower.¡± The Agrana Base couldn¡¯t be abandoned, more now than ever, after finding a potential divine relic. But, following procedures, they arrived ready for the worst, packing supplies, materials to fix the base and new members. Fermidia wouldn¡¯t stay on the Agrana Base. Her job was entering and exiting Permafrost constantly, maintaining the communications and safety of the Permafrost-Mergifari routes, transporting any findings and replacing personnel. Once everything was set and done, her next stop was Mergifari¡¯s harbor. ¡­ Velvet knocked on the wooden door before entering. The class didn¡¯t start until two minutes, but some novice mages with nothing to do were already there. Unlike Velvet. Velvet was a very busy woman, and she couldn¡¯t waste time waiting. Of course, that wasn¡¯t the only reason, but hey. Hasdrubal was also there, and lifted his head slightly to see who had entered, his eyes widening in surprise upon finding who it was. Velvet snickered in a low voice. For someone all-knowing, you surely don¡¯t look like you knew I was coming. ¡°Hello! I signed up just a minute ago!¡± She cheerfully said, stepping closer to an empty seat, sitting and crossing her legs daintily, a smile on her face. Hasdubal cleared his throat, and the other three novice mages simply went back to what they were doing previously. Nothing. Hadrubal¡¯s class had five seats, Velvet occupied the fourth, while two mages she didn¡¯t know and the blue haired girl she had sometimes seen with Igern¡¯s group occupied the rest. ¡°Well,¡± Hasdrubal said, getting up from his seat like old people did. Slowly and crouching. ¡°The class starts no-¡± ¡°Ah, wait, wait, is still not time, right? Can I enter too?¡± Someone interrupted, opening the door without knocking, rushing to enter. Here it is. Velvet thought. She hadn¡¯t waited until the last moment to add her name to the list for nothing, the same way she also didn¡¯t pick Hasdrubal for nothing. This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. The old mage was dangerous for her, and she knew that. And, if she knew, the mages watching her also did. No mage eyeing Frenese¡¯s Book would allow her to get so close to Hasdrubal without directly supervising in some way. Hasdrubal remained silent for a few seconds, clearly taking offense. ¡°Lox Voie. I don¡¯t remember you showing any interest in knowledge all these years. Instead, you looked more interested in spending your life in decadent habits. Or so do the Phorella say.¡± Velvet held back a laugh. Hasdrubal really lived to his name, didn¡¯t he? He had already guessed what Velvet¡¯s plan was, just by seeing her arrive so close to the limit, and, not only was he making that clear, he basically ended her plan. At first, she just wanted to know who was following her. Now, not only she knew who he was, Hasdrubal had basically told her Lox¡¯s Paradigm, family and strength. All these years: he was in the Mergifari since long ago. Not a novice. Decadent habits: Decadence Paradigm. The middle ground between grief and apathy. Phorella: Lox not sharing the last name meant that he was simply selected into the Phorella, not born on it. An ex-wanderer. Smiling sheepishly, Lox excused himself. ¡°Well, I do have some questions about¡­¡± Interrupting him, Hasdrubal spoke. ¡°As the last one to arrive, your doubts will wait until the class ends.¡± ¡°How long was this class again?¡± ¡°Three hours or more. I plan on teaching you five the complete history of the one hundred and fifty years the Rancour Rebellion spanned.¡± Hasdrubal put down five heavy, dusty old books upon the table, repressing mocking the aghast face Lox was making. He was not a knowledge mage, he was clearly unable to take something like that! Continuing, Hasdrubal dusted off his hands. ¡°Now, before you start. Do any of you have any questions¡­¡± ¡°Me!¡± Said Velvet, raising her hand high. ¡°Me, me, me!¡± Hasdrubal frowned slightly, wanting to admonish her attitude, but, once again, maybe Velvet had questions about Frenese¡¯s Book, the one he didn¡¯t have a chance to inspect. He had kind of thrown her a bone with Lox, after all. Maybe Velvet was feeling gratitude. Turning to look at her, he asked. ¡°And that is?¡± Aren¡¯t you all knowing? Why dontcha guess? Was what Velvet wanted to say, but, instead, she unceremoniously dropped Nebura¡¯s box onto the table. ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± Swallowing his disappointment, but still trying to professionally do his job, Hasdrubal grazed the box, sweeping his hand over it. Several illusions made with blue light particles, depicting pieces, symbols and simpler artifacts appeared, all of them floating slowly on the air, which Velvet assumed they represented the inner pieces and workings of the box. Hasdrubal took a kick peek with disinterest. ¡°A shield replicator. It creates an explosion which collides with a shield, using the rebound to decrypt the formation behind.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Velvet said. ¡°Why does Arhontissa want to replicate Mergifari¡¯s barrier?¡± She used an innocent tone, but the blue haired girl turned to look at the box again, opening her mouth and moving her hand upon recognizing the box. ¡°Barriers are made to seal stuff, obviously.¡± Lox interrupted. ¡°Aren¡¯t you a Knowledge mage? You should know that.¡± He was trying to provoke a reaction, but Velvet simply smiled and nodded. ¡°Is that so? Why, thank you!¡± Lox¡¯s smile fumbled a bit, as Velvet stored the box again, to the blue haired girl''s dismay. ¡°Any more questions?¡± The girl raised her hand, before moving both of them, making signs. It then dawned on Velvet that she was mute. She didn¡¯t know sign language, since there weren¡¯t books about it on Casrey, and neither were people who used the language. Even so, she memorized the signs, to look for them later. ¡°Switch the mermaid tears for mermaid blood.¡± Another student raised his hand, asking his question, and then the other. None of those questions were useful to Velvet, mostly being related to their current problems, like ¡®Why I cannot copy this spell?¡¯ or missing pieces of charms. Once each one of them (except Lox) asked their question, Hasdrubal started the class, and with it, the lesson. He spoke in a really, really boring way. After ten minutes, Lox started fidgeting on his seat, and, after one hour, he had basically disconnected. A really, really bad choice. Velvet thought. The history lesson was intense, and Hasdrubal was making sure to be as detailed as possible, speaking about the lives of different important figures, but Velvet understood his secondary intentions. Hasdrubal only spoke about a certain mage every time he knew for sure that Lox wasn¡¯t paying attention. A decadence mage, who had been betrayed and defeated. Hasdrubal, you sneaky bastard! Velvet thought. He had already discovered her intentions of taking mages down, and, in a way, was helping her, giving her ways to take down Lox, a mage stronger and more experienced than her. But the same help was a warning. He knew what her game was, before she even tried anything. And he was showing he wasn¡¯t against helping her take down their mutual ¡®enemies¡¯, instead biding his time until she lowered her guard. In a way, Hasdrubal actions spoke by themselves. He didn¡¯t care about Velvet getting stronger, because he knew any attempt would be futile against him. After all, Hasdrubal was All-Knowing. But, Velvet thought, what is a challenge without some difficulty? Chapter 96. Voices, two secrets, black hole Voices. Low pitched, high pitched, from a few seconds ago, from a few days ago, all mixing in a continuous, looping echo. Constantly changing, until arriving to the end, repeating all their noises. These voices didn¡¯t only pertain to spoken conversations, but also thoughts. Of course, Creftalia wasn¡¯t able to hear the thoughts, only the conversations. But the same couldn¡¯t be said for Dianthus. He had previously informed the Queen about his intentions of investigating the responsible of making the formation used to free Frenese, so he wasn¡¯t working in secret. Also, without permission, he really couldn¡¯t go back to the pocket dimension. He had made sure to get rid of any remnants pertaining to his and Velvet¡¯s conversations during the time the official mages couldn¡¯t access the pocket dimension, but he had left the ones surrounding the formation alone. Deleting those would be detrimental, and put him under dangerous attention. Dangerous attention which ended up going towards Velvet, but oh well. Not only that, he needed a Remembrance formation to recover and explore the past. It wasn¡¯t like he couldn¡¯t do one alone, but those formations took a lot of manpower to be made, so Dianthus simply dragged Creftalia along, just as she left the hospital, and put her to work. The girl complained a lot, but only in her mind. In reality, she was doing as told, only making a sad expression. "Kartal wouldn''t do something like this." An echo said. "Neither. Would. Lucius." Was another¡¯s echo response. Those were Velvet¡¯s and Vina¡¯s remnants. ¡°Can¡­ can we skip the next part?¡± Creftalia half-asked half-begged. She had already made the formation loop twice, and she didn¡¯t want to hear a third loop. Unlike Dianthus, she was a Remembrance mage, unable to forget the screams! She didn¡¯t need to have a third set of memories with those scenes! ¡°No. I still haven¡¯t checked all of them.¡± Creftalia sniffed, choosing to close her eyes. Even so, she still could hear the remnants screams, together with Velvet¡¯s steps and stabs. If she had known this beforehand, she wouldn¡¯t have slept next to Velvet for three whole days! How was she now supposed to look at her? Was Creftalia supposed to go and say ¡®Hey, I saw you butchering a flesh portal made of live mages. I also saw them begging for their lives during that!¡¯. At least I didn¡¯t confront her¡­ Creftalia grieved, knowing that she never confronted anyone anyway. On the other side, Dianthus checked the mages¡¯ last thoughts before dying. Just moments before truly dying, humans and mages alike saw their whole lives pass in front of their eyes, and, together with that, they tried to find someone to blame for their demise. Some blamed their lives before choosing to become mages and travel to the Mergifari, others blamed the Tarius, or the families working under them, their Selectors. Dianthus theorized one of those Selectors was the traitor. The Tarius didn¡¯t tell anyone outside their closest circle about Frenese, so one of them was a traitor. The memories went until Velvet started to lose control, where they became corrupted, and thus, irrecuperable. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. A small echo remained after Velvet passed out, when steps started to be heard, but then, the owner of those, like Dianthus did previously, erased their traces, blocking any intent of uncovering their identity through magic. The next and last remnant was when the Director and the other official mages showed up, noticing the second formation and Velvet holding Frenese''s book. Hasdrubal¡¯s remnant instantly approached Velvet, but someone pulled his long white hair from behind, stopping him. ¡°What¡¯s the rush, old man? Having some senile confusion? Focus on your own novices.¡± Ceres said, pulling the hair harder, making Hasdrubal tumble. Ceres¡­ Dianthus squinted at the echo. He had wanted Ceres as Selector, but he refused, rejecting him like a used paper. The reason was simple. He couldn¡¯t read Ceres¡¯ thoughts. Not his or his echo¡¯s. And not only that, Dianthus couldn¡¯t see his Paradigm or Esca. Ceres wasn¡¯t the only exception, the Director was one too. But he could attribute the Director¡¯s status to her being a very old, almost inhuman monster. Her presence felt like a dark hole, swallowing the light around her. Like a very fragile bomb, who could end the world if it made a bad move. But the same couldn¡¯t be said for her son. For every single thing, Ceres felt, looked and acted like a normal man in his thirties. A cocky, affluent man who abused her mother¡¯s power and influence to be an all around asshole to everyone. He had every possibility laid out before him to be an insufferable, untouchable dick, and he did not let down that chance. Those weren¡¯t Dianthus'' opinions, but the ones of every official mage who knew Ceres personally. And Dianthus hadn¡¯t mentioned the long, descriptive, graphic and intense rant going inside of Hasdrubal¡¯s mind. And he wasn¡¯t going to. Ignoring the Ceres situation, none of the mages present had any thoughts of victory, of a plan having gone perfectly. The culprit didn¡¯t go back to the crime scene¡­ that means that there are at least two culprits. One official mage and one novice mage. The second formation couldn¡¯t have been placed once the Opening started, because the official mages were watching during then, so someone had to install it before the Opening. But the formation core was taken before the pocket dimension opened, allowing the official mages to enter. So only someone already inside could have done so. Only High Ranked official mages affiliated to the Mergifari and Ceres entered to check the damages. The others remained outside. The remnants ended, and started looping again. ¡°I¡¯m running out of magic¡­¡± Creftalia complained. ¡°How? You¡¯re using me as a core, the magic you have to waste is almost zero.¡± ¡°Um¡­¡± Creftalia flinched, having been caught. ¡°I¡¯m being mentally drained¡­ You shouldn¡¯t overdose a remembrance mage with too much information¡­¡± ¡°The information is the same every time, the place it occupies in your brain shouldn¡¯t increase. Also, there¡¯s no way you¡¯re having an overload just from this.¡± ¡°Um¡­¡± She started fidgeting with her fingers, looking to the side with nervousness. ¡°The new monthly edition of the¡­¡± Her voice went extremely low, until becoming a barely audible whisper. ¡°Monster&Maiden magazine comes out today, and they always sell fast, so¡­¡± Creftalia started sweating. ¡°C-can¡¯t you just ask Velvet for help? She probably won¡¯t refuse if you pay her¡­¡± ¡°I am not doing that.¡± Dianthus said, an unpleasant crawling sensation running through his back. He didn¡¯t feel like poking Lothrigern right now, or bringing the attention who was now over Velvet back to him. The further she was from him, the safest he could move and act. Also, unlike with Creftalia, Dianthus felt like Velvet wanted to experiment with him. And not only her, her demon familiar, Hyde, also wanted to. He even nudged her on! ¡°Oh.¡± Creftalia said, ¡°Is it because you don¡¯t want to compete with Igern?¡± Dianthus blinked in confusion. ¡°What?¡± ¡°The competition between you and Igern over everything?¡± ¡°That¡¯s not a competition. I won against him, and not only against him, I won against everyone else. I am number one, in case you''ve forgotten.¡± ¡°But Velvet does prefer Igern, right?¡± Creftalia said, not only not reading the room, but misunderstanding the situation. ¡°He has the personality of a double edged sword with no handle that actively tries to kill you. I cannot compete against bad taste in men.¡± ¡°But he is just¡­ more attractive than you. Objectively, of course!¡± Dianthus scoffed. He should be the bigger person in the conversation, and yet¡­ ¡°Igern being more good-looking doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯m not good-looking!¡± ¡°Well, when you two are next to each other¡­ the comparison is there¡­¡± Creftalia looked up, thinking. ¡°Maybe you should ask Velvet for help when Igern isn¡¯t close, so that the difference isn¡¯t so noticeable. You cannot win at everything¡­¡± ¡°... Did I say you could stop working? No. Clearly you¡¯ve read too many weird novels and not worked enough. Guess it''s up to me to fix that. Go back to the loop.¡± Chapter 97. Patience is a double target virtue Walking down the hall, seemingly lost in thought, the box made clicking noises as Velvet tinkered with its levels and pullers, trying to open it. She stopped every few steps, and grinned to herself when another faint set of steps rushed to stop too. ¡°Cmon now, you know I can hear you.¡± Unlike Lox, who she wasn¡¯t able to feel following her until she forced him to reveal himself with Hasdrubal¡¯s ¡®help¡¯, she could sense her new pursuer. Velvet remained still, waiting for the mage to make a decision. And a decision they took, taking the remaining steps to turn around the corner, staying in front of her. It was the blue haired girl she kept seeing with Arhontissa''s group. ¡°See? It wasn¡¯t that hard, was it?¡± The girl raised her hand, before moving it around, making signs. ¡°Um.¡± Velvet interrupted her, letting out a nervous laugh. ¡°I don¡¯t know sign language¡­¡± Knowledge mages had an extremely easy time learning new languages, so admitting she didn¡¯t know was rather embarrassing. The girl stared at her in silence, lowering her hand and pressing her lips. The meaning of her disappointed glare was clear. ¡®You are a knowledge mage, aren¡¯t you? What do you mean you don¡¯t know? You should know better!¡¯. ¡°Stop with the glare¡­ I really didn¡¯t have the chance! I promise I will learn sign language once I have time. Oh, I know Morse Code, if that works.¡± As to prove her point, she tapped intermittently upon the box. As a response, the girl rummaged through her clothes, before pulling a small book and extending it to her. Velvet stored the box, taking the book. Obviously, it was a book about sign language, which Velvet went through with ease and speed, before nodding and returning it. She could now communicate with the girl. ¡°Charlampians, who live in the sea, by the sea, for the sea.¡± The girl rolled her eyes. ¡°What box?¡± Velvet played dumb, because it was free, and because she could. Clicking her tongue, she laughed. ¡°My, what a temper. At least, I don¡¯t know, introduce yourself first, take me to dinner or something.¡± I am not doing that. The girl thought, before shaking her head, continuing the conversation. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. Hm, no full name? She knows I know she¡¯s Arhontissian, so either she is being vague on purpose or wants to keep her family name a secret. As to show off her now stored ¡®prize¡¯, Velvet put her empty hands the same way she held the box previously. ¡°So, what¡¯s the opening offer?¡± Doireann stared at her. Velvet stared at her in silence, before laughing. ¡°Oh, that¡¯s a nice one! Straight to the point!¡± She started walking again, followed by Doireann. ¡°Lemme think¡­ yes, it might work.¡± After a moment, she added. ¡°But, try to backstab me, and I¡¯ll break the box.¡± That would make her waste less magic. And, she really wanted to do some real test for her half open Esca. Nebura was just an appetizer, after all. ¡­ To ¡®lure¡¯ Lox out, who had gone back into hiding, Velvet planned to redo the Rancour Rebellion scenario, more precisely, the part where the Decadence mage got defeated. Decadence, as the middle ground between Grief and Apathy, was not a frontline Paradigm, but one more inclined towards spying and assassination. In Lox¡¯s case, the apathy part made his presence be ignored by the people surrounding him. It wasn¡¯t that he was invisible, but that Velvet and other mages simply ¡®chose¡¯ to ignore his existence, becoming unable to see him. The grief part consisted of curses, corruption and hexes. Velvet had to make sure no hair, skin or blood fell into his hands, or she might start having problems. She had once almost lost a hand under Cornelius Graham¡¯s curse, and he was from the Pride Paradigm, suffering from the loss of power from using spells of differing Paradigms. She didn¡¯t know how powerful a curse from a mage pertaining to a curse-adjacent Paradigm would be, and she didn¡¯t want to find out. By what Doireann had told her, she was from a Paradigm which could ¡®close¡¯ spaces, nullifying Lox¡¯s invisibility and weakening him. She didn¡¯t say the name, but it was fine, Velvet didn¡¯t mind. Not for now, at least. For now, Velvet was back in the forest, away from any edifice, when Doireann stopped abruptly, a greatsword forming in her hands, which she proceeded to stab on the ground. The greatsword buried itself, with numerous strings of symbols coming from it, covering the surrounding ground in spiraling text. At fifty meters, the written symbols went up, effectively ¡®closing¡¯ the space. It resembles a Colosseum¡­ Velvet thought, wondering if Doireann¡¯s Paradigm was called Gladiator. As the colosseum finished forming, a presence started being felt, just next to Velvet. Jumping back, she tossed a paper figurine, ready to explode it. Lox raised his hand, making a waving motion, the figurine losing its shine. Immediately, Velvet cut her connection to it, preventing any curse from reaching her. ¡°If I was in your shoes, I would reconsider.¡± Lox said. ¡°I¡¯m merely an observer, nothing else.¡± ¡°I hope you realize how creepy that sounds.¡± Velvet said. She had noticed that Lox needed to ¡®disarm¡¯ her paper figurine, so, unlike a fully apathy mage, he was unable to become untouchable. The colosseum symbols light up, and Velvet felt some of her magic lowering, before raising again. Doireann was taunting her, but, since Velvet could still break the box, not to say, having Frenese¡¯s deal as a last resort, with what she could simply ask the devil to devour the colosseum, she chose to put up with it. Patience brings opportunities, and Velvet was waiting for hers. Saying that, she didn¡¯t wait, immediately sending three paper figurines after Lox, who jumped back, a black mist surrounding him. This time she didn¡¯t cut the connection with the figurines once the mist touched them, making them explode. A crawling pain started to grow on her fingertips, going up, and she used a small fire spell to burn her skin over those places, gritting her teeth through the pain, but stopping the curse. Lox slammed a tree, right before Doireann mobilyzed her colosseum, forcing him down between struggling noises. Velvet looked at her, and Doireann moved her arms. ¡°But of course!¡± Velvet said, smiling, going towards Lox¡¯s figure. Kneeling beside him, she reached her hands. ¡°It¡¯s what we agreed on, after a-¡± Stab. A long, sharp sword crossed Velvet¡¯s chest, side to side. Doireann moved her hand back, her plan done. She needed that box intact, no use waiting for Velvet to feel like handing it over, right? She walked towards her. Lox turned his head. ¡°Do-¡± He didn¡¯t finish the sentence, starting to cough blood. What? Doireann stopped, just as Velvet¡¯s head turned completely backwards, a smile on her face. ¡°Aw, not bothering to check your aim? It¡¯s quite good, you did kill two birds with one stone!¡± Lox forced himself to use some black mist to stop the illusion, making Velvet¡¯s stabbed figure transform into a paper figurine, which crumpled into dust. Doireann¡¯s sword, on the other side, laid deep inside Lox¡¯ stomach. Since the Velvet she stabbed was not real, the sword hadn¡¯t found any resistance, burying its edge under the next thing it had found. Doireann tried to approach Lox, but he stopped her. ¡°Don¡¯t. She has half an Esca!¡± Cursing inside, she blamed the damn file. Velvet hadn¡¯t shown abilities pertaining to that level yet, had she been waiting for something like this? ¡°It¡¯s nothing so impressive, really.¡± Velvet¡¯s voice came from behind her, just before she clapped. ¡°Now, what was truly impressive was your show! I almost trusted you enough to show you my back!¡± ¡°It¡¯s so good that patience is a virtue! You should have some patience next time. Maybe talk to Creftalia first, instead of rushing.¡± Saying that, she lowered her arms, her smile becoming twisted. ¡°That being said¡­¡± Chapter 98. Head Start Velvet continued speaking, as Doireann knelt next to Lox. "What a sudden turn of events! You just stabbed him!" Doireann looked at Lox''s wound, checking how much was damaged. It wasn''t lethal, as long as she hurried to the hospital. She grabbed Lox, raising him, and then... And then they happily went their merry way to the hospital! Everyone was happy and alive! Can you imagine, now? "Where are you going?" Velvet said, humming as she walked to the middle of the road, spinning the closed umbrella with her hand, blocking their way. "Are you in a hurry? I wasn¡¯t done talking." Doireann grit her teeth, making several signs. "Now, now... there''s a certain mistake on your part. I wasn''t the one who stabbed him, was I?" Pressing the umbrella''s tip on the ground, Velvet grinned. "The bad bad very bad stabber was you!" Doireann knew how hypocritical that sounded, but both of them knew she was right. Velvet had no backing who could ¡®avenge¡¯ her if she got killed, but Lox did. That was one of the benefits of belonging to a mage family. "Relax, I''m not such a heartless monster, I know how to negotiate." Velvet leaned on the umbrella. "For starters, hand over everything valuable you carry. You said I could keep all the spoils, right?" Doireann opened her mouth, so angry she wanted to curse Velvet out. Even so, one of her arms was busy helping Lox, so she was unable to curse her as good as she wanted. Lox coughed blood, speaking softly. "Just give her what she wants... She figured out who you are, I''m sure of that." Velvet chuckled. "Right. I wanted to make it some kind of big reveal, but anyhow..." With a mocking gesture, a one handed half curtsy, she said. "Nice to meet you, Doireann Phorella." Even when she wanted to take full credit for that deduction, part of it was thanks to Hasdrubal himself. He was the one mentioning the Phorella in the first place, and Lox¡¯s connection to them. Velvet simply connected the dots when Doireann didn''t give her her full name, just offering to help her against a mage supposedly stronger than both of them. Mages who confronted enemies leagues over their own were either arrogant or stupid, and died soon. For someone part of the Queen''s Selected group, a mage like that would be a joke. So, for Doirann to suggest teaming up with Velvet, without fully trusting her enough to say her full name, to defeat Lox was a very, very weak ploy. Once again, Velvet barely gave them time to plot anything too elaborate, entering Hasdrubal¡¯s class just before it started, so it wasn''t all their fault. But, did that really matter? Whether their plan failed or not, losers were losers and winners were winners. And losers weren''t the ones who took it all. Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. Velvet almost wanted to rejoice in front of Doirann''s surprised face when she said her full name. So she did. "You can think it over as much as you want, but thoughts won''t stop a bleeding." Doireann grit her teeth, but, slowly, unclasped her and Lox''s bracelets and wallets, tossing them to Velvet''s feet. Without waiting for her reaction, Doireann dragged Lox towards the forest''s exit. Only for Velvet to cross their way again. "Now, now. I did say that was for starters. Did you really think I was going to let you leave after backstabbing me without roughing you up a bit?" Velvet took a step forward, just for them to take a step back. "Oh, but don''t worry. I know you need your arms to communicate, so I won''t break them." ¡°Clear? So, run, run, because you won¡¯t be getting a head start.¡± ¡­ Finally, Creftalia was done. Well, actually, Dianthus was the one who was done, releasing her from her unfair captivery. The only remaining work was going back to the Marine Spring Palace, writing some papers about what she discovered and then she could finally rush towards the kiosk before it closed or ran out of stock. Dianthus was walking behind her, directed to the Palace too, but since he had promised to not ask her for more work, she wasn¡¯t in a hurry to lose him. Reaching the First Tower, and then the entrance to the pocket dimension, Creftalia skittered towards the Palace¡¯s entrance, only to open it and¡­ Realize that there were too many people for the time it was, and that they seemed to be in the middle of a discussion. She saw Winter, Nebura, Doireann, Igern, Cormac, Parthalan and Dianthus, who somewhat had arrived before her. Nebura had a few scratches, but Doireann looked way worse, more roughed up and with a bandaged leg. ¡°Um¡­ What happened?¡± She asked, not really wanting a full history, just to show some sympathy. ¡°Velvet happened.¡± Nebura said, applying some ointment to her burns. Doireann added, not moving from where she was seated. ¡°How? She awoke like five hours ago¡­¡± ¡°Five hours too many.¡± Nebura said, grimacing. ¡°And she still has the replicator.¡± Dianthus laughed, receiving some mean spirited stares. ¡°Wow, really? She woke up and chose violence just like that? And three of you got beat up and ransacked along the way? Hahaha! Oh, I would be so ashamed of myself if that was me.¡± Doireann said, receiving a few nods agreeing with her suggestion. Even Igern raised his head slightly, clearly interested too! Clearing her throat, and being the only official mage in the room, Winter stopped the infighting. ¡°Now, now, let''s focus on the important things. Velvet has now half an Esca, and not only that, the shield replicator is in her hands.¡± So disappointing¡­ I should¡¯ve made a better offer during the Selection. I knew Velvet was worth nurturing, and still lost her to Ceres¡­ Winter sighed, feeling dejected. ¡°Huh, of all the things you could call her, a hard worker is the most appropriate.¡± Dianthus said, looking at his gloved hands. ¡°No wonder she is already at Half Esca level. Creftalia, you should take note.¡± Stopping right before the exit, Creftalia cursed Dianthus. Why are you bringing me to the spotlight, you traitor?! ¡°Do¡­ do you want me to murder a dozen mages in cold blood, drink devil¡¯s blood, provoke a self-loss of control and throw myself in a three day coma?¡± Nebura flinched a bit. Velvet did what now? ¡°You forgot to beat three mages upon waking up.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t listen to Dianthus, you don¡¯t have to do that.¡± Winter said, massaging her head. That being said, you could put in a bit more work. I know you¡¯re trying to flee from this conversation. ¡°Focus on the important matters.¡± Winter continued. ¡°The shield replicator. After that, you can wait a few days before trying anything.¡± ¡°Why wait?¡± Dianthus said, to everyone''s discontent. ¡°Are you so afraid of her taking some devil¡¯s blood?¡± Doireann said, before putting her hand on the table to get up. ¡°Hold your horses. Why don¡¯t you first listen to my plan about how to get the replicator thing back?¡± Not waiting for anyone to accept hearing his offer, because no one was willing to, he spoke, loud and clear, so that everyone was forced to understand his words nonetheless. ¡°Well, Creftalia here did guarantee me that Velvet liked Igern, so,¡± ignoring Creftalia sudden panic stricken face, he continued. ¡°I suggest we send him to negotiate.¡± ¡°I did not say that!¡± She screeched, cursing every moment she exchanged words with the damned Chosen One. Dianthus opened his mouth to add something, but he was unable to, a cold, ice spear traversing his head. ¡°We should keep trying. Maybe someday it will work.¡± Chapter 99. Spoils and snacks After finishing with Doireann, Velvet checked her spoils. Like Agorn, they carried around 5000 auris each, which put her current capital at 25000 auris. Two times was a coincidence, but three times was a pattern. Did apprentice mages always carry 5000 auris with them? Of course, they could simply store savings inside their bedrooms, which in turn were inside a pocket mirror inhabited by official mages, something Velvet couldn''t do. That only could mean conflicts tended to arise every now and then, and that Velvet wasn¡¯t the only novice mage plundering another. Which was both good and bad. Good because official mages wouldn¡¯t come knocking on her door and bad because what you do can be done to you. And she didn¡¯t have any safe house. She could try to summon any fairy who was interested in doing safekeeping, but¡­ Velvet didn¡¯t really like to have her money where she didn¡¯t feel it. As a knowledge mage, greed played half the part, and going against her greedy tendencies could harm her mental state. She needed her mind focused on these two months, not if her money was safe in a fairy¡¯s hands. Even so, 25000 auris were enough to tear down Casrey¡¯s orphanage, rebuild it again, buy enough terrain to build a greenhouse, a farm, hire several workers to take care of those and pay them more than a fair wage. If she were to go back, she would become the richest person in Casrey. Not that that was possible, but it was a way to explain her current capital. Having said that, mage lifestyle did cost much more than normal humans. Next, she checked the pets. Lox was carrying three containers and one feeding ball full of rats. The first container had a bunch of snakes tangled into a ball. They coiled constantly around each other, keeping as together as possible. Their size was small, so Velvet guessed they were used as ingredients for potions. The second one had a swamp. And that was it. Well, not really. Velvet saw something swimming under the murky waters, but the waters were just too dirty to see. Maybe some sort of fish. The third one had a mop. A literal mop. The thing used for mopping. Probably some artifact, Velvet didn¡¯t have the time or opportunity to ask Lox, so she didn¡¯t know what it did. Now, Doireann¡¯s stuff. Velvet remembered Hasdrubal telling her to switch mermaid tears for mermaid blood, so she hoped one of her containers had a mermaid. And it did. Just, not alive. Mermaids, like other magical beings, were impossible to imprison in a container, since they could simply use their own magic to break the formation. Like the monkey being sold at the auction, the mermaid had been dissected and stored in a glass chamber filled with liquid, with smaller glass jars containing the organs and other parts ready for use. Doireann had spent almost half of it, but it was a good prize nonetheless. The other container had an egg. A big, blue egg. ¡°Hm. Omelette¡­¡± Velvet joked to herself. She was not going to do that, but it was night and she still hadn¡¯t eaten anything, so the thought was unavoidable. And tentative, but she forcefully pushed it back, after licking her lips. She didn¡¯t know if the egg had a chance to hatch, or if it was simply a potion ingredient. ¡°Hyde, do you recognize this egg?¡± She asked, not really expecting an affirmative answer. ¡°No, but it¡¯s probably from a reptile.¡± ¡°How are you so sure?¡± She didn¡¯t see anything which pointed towards the egg having scaly parents. ¡°It gives me reptilian vibes.¡± If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Vibes? The egg gives you vibes?¡± ¡°I¡¯m a demon, I can feel vibes.¡± She stood in silence for a moment. ¡°How do Frenese¡¯s vibes feel?¡± ¡°Hungry.¡± ¡°How do my vibes feel?¡± Now it was Hyde¡¯s turn to be silent. ¡°That bad?¡± ¡°You are a mage that¡¯s killed several mages. At this point, not only demons sense the bloody vibes coming from you. No wonder mages prefer to backstab you than negotiate.¡± Hey now, that last point was unnecessary¡­ ¡°Am I better or worse than Alrai?¡± ¡°Worse.¡± Hyde didn¡¯t even try to soften the blow. ¡°Ahaha¡­¡± She let out a tense laugh, before going back to the egg. A reptile, hm? She hoped it was the offspring of a magical creature. If it was, and it imprinted on her, the creature wouldn¡¯t try to escape the container, and she would have a stable source of materials of maximum quality. Of course, if it was, there was no way Doireann wouldn¡¯t try to get it back. But, like with the box, Velvet wasn¡¯t planning on going to war for its ownership. She accepted offers, and money didn¡¯t need maintenance. That being said, she was hungry. ¡­ After a trip down the Mergifari¡¯s food stalls, Velvet brought several skewers of roasted squid, zucchini, mushrooms and some unidentified fish, two bowls of coleslaw, a beer and a bottle of lemonade, all for takeout. She wanted to ask Tristan about the mop artifact, and, since the woman probably also hadn¡¯t eaten, Velvet wanted to bribe her with food. Like before, Tristan was in her workshop, now in the Mergifari¡¯s Archives, or, the Second Tower. Velvet climbed the spiral staircase, not before informing Merrs of who she was visiting, as to have free entrance. Even so, the free entrance only allowed her to go to Tristan¡¯s archive, and not to snoop around. She hadn¡¯t even tried to do so before Merrs explicitly told her that. Knocking on the door, Velvet entered after hearing a voice, opening the door to see Tristan working on an immense machine. ¡°Huh, what¡¯s that?¡± The half built part of the machine looked like the suit sailors used to dive underwater, but with some drills for gloves. The other part was still being made, showing the gears, machinery and the metallic skeleton for the user to safely go and remain inside. Tristan¡¯s voice came from inside the hole in the suit, only her lower half body visible, standing on a ladder. ¡°A prototype for a new Driller model for the SP. The Higher Ups want them to be fAsTeR.¡± The annoyed tone in which she said that wasn¡¯t lost to Velvet. ¡°You can ask for security or speed, but those idiots only care about speed. If they had two working brain cells, they would understand that security works better long term, and allows to keep more workers around, but-¡± Crack. Velvet heard Tristan cursing, before taking something out. ¡°Pass me a replacement.¡± Not waiting for her answer, Tristan tossed a broken cylinder at Velvet¡¯s general direction. A paper figurine sacrificed its cleanliness to grab the greased piece before it hit Velvet. The cylinder had symbols wrapped around it, who glowed faintly under the room¡¯s light, even after being covered in grease. Ignoring the crack at the top, the materials employed on its fabrication were noticeable. Is that gold? Indeed, the formation was engraved in gold, with thin, microscopic threads composing the symbols and writings. With only a glimpse, one could acknowledge that the piece was very expensive, and took a lot of work just to be made. Just for Tristan to toss it to her like rubbish. And not only that. On the floor there was a box filled with the exact same cylinders, who were separated from each other by smaller, cushioned wooden boxes. ¡°Do I need to grease it?¡± She asked, carefully picking one. ¡°No.¡± Velvet gave her the cylinder, and, knowing Tristan, tried to negotiate. ¡°I brought food, why don¡¯t we eat?¡± ¡°Let me finish this first, we can eat later. Since you¡¯re already here, make some copies of the blueprints on the table, and archive the originals.¡± A sensation of dread crept over her back, making her shudder. ¡°But the food will go cold¡­¡± Not taking her attention away from the machine, Tristan ignored her pleas. ¡°Heat it up with magic once we¡¯re done.¡± Velvet pressed her lips in silence. But I am hungry¡­ Chapter 100. Reaching past Dianthus stood straight, the wound on his head closing slowly. Even his blood ignored gravity, entering his body again. ¡°What kind of weak ass throw was that? It didn¡¯t even knock me off.¡± He opened his mouth again to provoke Igern even more. ¡°You must not hate that idea that muc-¡± ¡°Enough.¡± Winter said, as Igern stood up, just to sit down again. And not only him, all the other mages who were, and weren¡¯t raising a fit: Doireann, Nebura, Creftalia, Dianthus¡­ lowered their heads, sweat dripping down their necks. Winter sighed, but made no effort to release them for the Order''s effects. They staying silent was almost a blessing (for her, that is), so she wasn¡¯t in a hurry. It didn¡¯t matter that they were the strongest novice mages on Arhontissa, and the ones at the top of the Mergifari. To any official mage, their skills, powers and tricks were children¡¯s games. No, calling them children was also incorrect. Mages, like humans, were soft on their children. An actual description of how official mages saw novice mages conflicts would be: a chicken coop. As long as the chickens laid eggs, the feathers they lost in fights were of zero importance. In some way, what Velvet did to Nebura could be summarized as: a chicken stealing another chicken¡¯s egg, an egg who was almost ready to be collected. Of course, Winter understood Nebura¡¯s inner conflict. Velvet was part of her past, the past she wanted to get rid of with such insistence, who just showed up, stole two years of work like no one¡¯s business, and made the problem grow so much that two other mages ended up injured. If she was being honest, even when the injured were Arhontissian mages, Winter found it a little funny. If she weren¡¯t banned from doing so, she would go to find Velvet and pinch her cheeks. Even when they acted like they didn¡¯t want anything to do with the other, and were too mature to shout at each other, both Velvet and Nebura wanted to fight on sight. In fact, before Dianthus and Creftalia showed up, Nebura had been insisting on being the one to go get her box back. But anyone with half a working brain could see that was Velvet¡¯s plan. Nebura¡¯s suggestion then changed to borrowing some artifacts and blowing Velvet up by surprise, to which Winter just sighed. After thinking over it, in some way, Dianthus¡¯ idea wasn¡¯t so ridiculous. Their reasonable options were: Igern, Creftalia or Dianthus. Velvet would curbstomp and mug Creftalia in seconds, Winter had no doubts about it. She even doubted Creftalia would even try to get the box, since she clearly had been overworked by Dianthus. Creftalia might even negotiate to spend the night in her hut, just to get away from more work. Dianthus¡­ he wasn¡¯t a bad option, but he was chronically unable to follow instructions. Like, at all. Also, he sucked at negotiating without angering the other party, so the chances of the box ending up damaged were high. Sending Dianthus was a way to burn the bridge for Velvet to switch sides. And Winter still wasn¡¯t letting go of that chance. Even more now that Velvet possessed Frenese¡¯s Book. Of course, she knew they had worked together on the Frenese seal, so their relationship couldn¡¯t be that bad. In some way, sending Dianthus wasn¡¯t that bad of a choice¡­ Now, Igern¡­ he and Velvet had fought several times, but it wasn¡¯t anything personal. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. Wait, no. It was. Winter sighed again. She then remembered the Order was still in effect, and all the mages remained still, silent and sweating under her power. ¡°You can speak now.¡± She said, waving her hand. ¡°No fighting. Just think about a feasible plan.¡± Official mages couldn¡¯t directly intervene in novice mages conflicts. Not because the abuse of power mattered, but because a novice mage being protected constantly didn¡¯t have room to grow. Even so, some novice mages tended to follow their Selectors like bees, just to prevent getting involved into some fight. But the skills of those novice mages ended up stagnating. The only way for an Esca to progressively open was using magic, and magic was born from a mage¡¯s Paradigm, who followed the mage¡¯s desires. The fastest way to nudge those desires was violence. For Velvet, of the Knowledge Paradigm, fighting other mages allowed her to know more about spells previously unknown, and also tugged at her greed, shown in her desires to take and keep all the spoils. For Igern, of the Tyranny Paradigm, fighting and triumphing over other mages tugged at both his desires of causing destruction from the wrath side, and claiming victory over his enemies from the pride side. The same could be said for every other mage. Therefore, for the Mergifari, whose main objective was nurturing strong mages as soon as possible, allowing fights to happen was in its best interests. As long as no mage killed another, all the violence served its purpose. Make novice mages stronger. There were simply not enough official mages to handle all the problems, the biggest example being Permafrost. In fact, after the Frenese¡¯s fiasco, the Mergifari¡¯s High Command was debating as to reduce the waiting until the next Selection from three to one years, and, after recovering from its losses, to two years. Winter felt that one year was too little time for interesting novice mages to emerge, which would end with lackluster competition during the next Selection if they followed with that choice. But alas, she had no voting power over those decisions. And neither had the Queen. She still had opinions about the last point. The Queen was way above more than half High Command, yet she had no power over the Mergifari¡¯s verdicts! Winter had even suggested her to make their own academy on Arhontissa, where the Queen could have all the power and control, to which the Queen had refused, claiming: ¡°The Mergifari is the best place. It has always been. Nowhere else compares. If we built our own academy, we still would¡¯ve had to send our strongest novices here.¡± She hadn¡¯t answered why, and Winter didn¡¯t press the issue. Even if she was an official mage, she didn¡¯t have all the knowledge in the world. A cough broke her inner musings, and she looked at Dianthus, who was the one with a sore throat. ¡°What is it?¡± Dianthus didn¡¯t hold back a grin, knowing that Winter wasn¡¯t paying attention to the things they said a minute ago, too lost in her world. ¡°Igern said that he will go.¡± Ignoring Igern¡¯s look, which clearly meant that he didn¡¯t say anything resembling those things, Winter waved her hand, wrapping up things, no longer interested in the truth of Dianthus¡¯ words. ¡°Good, good. I hope the box is back by tomorrow.¡± Igern bit his tongue once Winter said that, refraining himself from complaining, but instead interested in remembering. He would pay Dianthus back. No doubts about it. ¡­ Dianthus had to hold back a breath of relief once Winter gave for finished the matter. He was not an idiot, and, with time, had developed some intuition to sense when problems were just waiting to happen. That box meant trouble, even more when it was related to a magic wall that had not broken in hundreds of years. Chosen Ones and things who had an ¡®unbreakable seal¡¯ on its description were a bad combination. Just look at Frenese¡¯s Book. Now add Lothrigern to the mix, who was monitoring Velvet. If he were to go, that wall had its days counted. So he ¡®convinced¡¯ Igern to take his place. That way, the box would stay a box, and the wall would remain unbreakable. Of course, that didn¡¯t mean the matter with the wall was over. Just postponed. He was unable to escape fate, after all. Chapter 101. Prideful Unbreakable Almighty Fortress Munching on the roasted squid, juicy and perfectly done, even after reheating it with magic, Velvet¡¯s attention went from the food to the machine, and back to the food. ¡°So, what is the SP? Is it related to Permafrost?¡± She had seen the blueprints, noting how every single one of them had the function of retaining heat and repelling frost, connecting the dots. Tristan swallowed the fish. She wasn¡¯t a picky eater, but liked machines too much to care about other things. ¡°Yes. In a few days one of their ships will come, leave some things and take another''s.¡± ¡°What will they leave? Ice?¡± Tristan chuckled. ¡°Stop clowning. Records, notes, experimental logs¡­ any kind of discoveries.¡± Velvet stared at her in silence, with a waiting smile. ¡°And ice.¡± Tristan ended up admitting. ¡°I knew it.¡± ¡°I just told you to stop clowning. I don¡¯t need two Ceres in my life.¡± Taking a sip of beer to clean her mouth, she continued. ¡°Anyway, I¡¯m sure you didn¡¯t come here to bring me food and company, so, shoot.¡± ¡°You know me so well, my beloved Tristan!¡± Velvet exclaimed, clapping her hands, before starting to rummage through her things. ¡°You see, I got-¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t pay for it, I assume?¡± ¡°I acquired it with my superior skills. So, I got this mop-looking thing, but I don¡¯t know what it does.¡± She passed the container to Tristan, making it roll over the table towards her. Tristan picked it, looking inside. ¡°It¡¯s a concealer. It serves to clean up the traces of floor formations, as to make them impossible to recover and track.¡± The only floor formation Velvet had made was the one surrounding the hut, with Hyde¡¯s help (well, actually, Hyde did all the work while she tested the brooms). Even so, it was really useful. ¡°To keep it in nice condition you need to wash it by hand before five hours have passed from its use. Or it will activate all the formations it cleaned at once.¡± Velvet nodded. It was a more efficient drawback that the one Sinoe¡¯s Baslard had. Of course, the knife had more raw power. ¡°Speaking of formations, there was another thing I wanted to ask. So, a mage with whom I had a¡­ quarrel used some strange spell. It was as if she summoned a colosseum. It looked incomplete, and didn¡¯t last for long.¡± Velvet extended her hands slowly. ¡°As if she suddenly made a formation. But it wasn¡¯t a formation. I checked.¡± Tristan hummed. ¡°Nothing you should bother with. Not until you obtain half an Esca.¡± ¡°I already have half an Esca.¡± She said. Tristan looked at her up and down. ¡°Huh, that was fast. Alright, I don¡¯t mind explaining it to you. But not for free.¡± Velvet¡¯s smile flinched, as a bad premonition crawled over her. ¡°I still have four free classes from the Mergifari. Can¡¯t I simply spend one for it?¡± ¡°No.¡± Tristan shut her fantasies down fast. ¡°I want you to do me a favor in five days.¡± Resigning herself, she asked. ¡°Can you tell me what that favor entails first?¡± She wasn¡¯t going to agree to do anything she didn¡¯t know beforehand. She didn¡¯t agree with Dianthus, and she wouldn¡¯t agree with Tristan. And in addition to that, she would lose the Devil¡¯s Blood buff by then. ¡°Of course.¡± Tristan took out a sphere made of stacked gears, and pressed it against the table with one finger on top. The sphere¡¯s gears clicked open, starting to turn. Slowly, the noises coming from outside the room disappeared, as the surroundings grew increasingly quiet. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. A concealment artifact¡­ Velvet guessed. She wondered why Tristan simply didn¡¯t call Udulluay, but didn¡¯t ask. Tristan continued. ¡°The ship coming from Permafrost, the Pioneer Three, will arrive in five days. They are apparently bringing in an exceptional item this time. I don¡¯t care about that item, but the head and watchdogs of the Traversa family do.¡± ¡°You want me to sneak into someone''s house and steal something?¡± Velvet remembered Agorn, the mage who had snuck into her hut to set traps. She had caught him the second time, sending him on a nice, deserved vacation. ¡°Not a house, this is a big mage family I¡¯m speaking about. You only need to infiltrate the pocket dimension and memorize certain documents. If I wanted to steal something, I wouldn¡¯t pick a knowledge mage.¡± Velvet grinned. ¡°Oh, you have other options aside from me?¡± ¡°Of course. You¡¯re just the one who got here first.¡± Disappointed about not being THE only choice, her grin disappeared. ¡°Like who?¡± Tristan avoided the answer, taking another sip of beer. ¡°I don¡¯t tell them about you, I don¡¯t tell you about them.¡± You don¡¯t have anyone else, right? Was Tristan a Pride mage or something similar? She was starting to have doubts. Even so, she didn''t press the issue, still having other questions. ¡°How do I enter a pocket dimension without permission? If it was so easy, Frenese wouldn¡¯t have eaten that many mages.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t ask me about why or how the Frenese thing happened. Devils do not fall under my area of expertise. Machines do.¡± She made a pause, waiting for Velvet to accept the facts as they were. ¡°What I did was hide a position replicator, which you can connect to another by getting close, making a temporary portal.¡± ¡°How did you sneak the replicator in the first place?¡± Velvet felt like Tristan wasn¡¯t telling her the whole history, which wasn¡¯t helping her in building trust. ¡°I didn¡¯t sneak it.¡± Tristan sighed, noticing how Velvet was progressively squinting harder at her. ¡°I left it with someone ten years ago, when she still lived there. She barely uses the room now, so it¡¯ll be empty.¡± Ten years?! You really didn¡¯t have anyone else to ask! ¡°And you¡¯re sure it still works?¡± ¡°No, but that¡¯s even better for you, isn¡¯t it? If the replicator on the other side is broken or damaged, you don¡¯t have to do anything and still get information for free.¡± ¡°What if it¡¯s been found, and the mages inside are waiting?¡± ¡°I will give you enough artifacts and information to prevent those situations. As long as you don¡¯t take too much time and don¡¯t try to steal anything, it¡¯s doable.¡± Velvet pressed her lips in deterrence. ¡°And I only get paid information about a spell?¡± ¡°It¡¯s more than a spell, but alright, let¡¯s see¡­¡± Tristan rummaged through her pockets. ¡°What kind of artifact would you lik-¡± ¡°A gun. I want a gun.¡± ¡°Guns are forbidden on the Mergifari.¡± She now kind of understood why. Guns were useless to learn magic, and the chances of a life-threatening wound appearing after a confrontation where they were involved increased by a tenfold. Official mages could deal with guns easily, but the same couldn¡¯t be said for most novice mages. Even some who were no longer novices had problems. Case in point, Cornelius Graham. Remembering the apathy mage they confronted on the Opening, the triple shotgun he used was more a dispeller artifact which resembled a gun than an actual gun. ¡°Ngh¡­¡± Velvet groaned. ¡°Or something similar. Purely offensive.¡± ¡°If I give you something truly dangerous, and you end up killing someone, can you pay the debt?¡± Velvet didn¡¯t need to answer that, since both of them knew the answer. ¡°Do you want to belong to the Mergifari?¡± ¡°What are you willing to give me then?¡± Tristan looked at her in silence, lost in thought. ¡°You¡¯ve probably seen the remains of my life on the hut you¡¯re occupying now, and seen how easy it is for people to approach it.¡± ¡°I¡¯m aware.¡± ¡°When I was younger, I built a whole security system, the Tristan¡¯s Almighty Fortress.¡± Velvet pressed her lips, trying not to cringe. ¡°D-did you pick the name?¡± What she really wanted to say was: how can you say such a name without flinching even a little? Both of them stared at each other, unblinking. In the end, Tristan squinted at her. ¡°I was younger back then.¡± Still sounds like a name Celia or Creftalia would come with¡­ ¡°Names aside, I can reinstall it. If you get me what I want. If not, you¡¯ll have to do with only the information.¡± Velvet thought about it. The number of mages after her wasn¡¯t small, and she needed to increase it even more, which made Tristan¡¯s offer not that bad. And she would give the material and artifacts needed to do the mission. ¡°I¡¯ll do it.¡± She said. Tristan nodded. ¡°Good. As promised, I¡¯ll tell you about the spell you saw. Spell, or, how it is actually called, Embodiment.¡± ¡°The shortest explanation would be an Esca Overturn. But you don¡¯t want the short version, do you?¡± Chapter 102. Concept-Structure-Embody Tristan stretched, before taking out three small glass figurines and setting them in front of Velvet. The three looked the same, depicting a mage with a plain face, dressed in simple robes, with the only difference between them being the symbols on their hands, who numbered them by I, II and III. ¡°First, the mage you saw using this was..?¡± Tristan asked, looking at the figurines. ¡°Doireann Phorella.¡± ¡°I know the Phorella family. Nobles. Makes sense she knows the first steps for a Conceptualization. Anyway, the Conceptualization is the first phase for a mage to develop what will be considered their Magnum Opus. But¡­ stop making that face.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not doing any face.¡± ¡°Yes you are. The ¡®I want that¡¯ face.¡± ¡°You just told me mages have an ultimate spell. Of course I want one.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t say that. And sorry for ruining your delusions, but the only reason she has one it¡¯s because she can follow the correct steps her family walked before her, evading all the wrong choices. You won¡¯t even know where to start.¡± Smiling, Velvet asked. ¡°Can¡¯t you teach me the first steps at least?¡± ¡°We have different Paradigms, so no. And even having the same Paradigm isn¡¯t enough, since sometimes Escas just differ from each other by the mage¡¯s personality. That¡¯s why having a collection of all the trials and errors their predecessors went through is so helpful.¡± ¡°And if I don¡¯t have that?¡± ¡°You might spend fifty years just for a useful Conceptualization.¡± Tristan took the first glass figurine, and pressed a button under it. The figurine came to life, extending both arms forward. A circular light came from it, resembling Doireann¡¯s Colosseum, just that instead of a wall, several immense gears made by symbols appeared. Slowly spinning around the figurine, disappearing after a few seconds, just to repeat again. ¡°To reach the Embodiment stage, a mage must fulfill the two previous steps. This one is the first, called Conceptualization.¡± ¡°The Conceptualization phase it''s the first step, containing the groundwork of what the Embodiment will become. For mages who know how their final Embodiment will look, that''s to say, nobles or ancient families, that step can be started once Half Esca has been opened. For the rest, waiting until having a full Esca is recommended." "Why?" "There''s too many things you don''t know yet, and the Conceptualization must be made thinking about the future. If you learn or discover something that shakes your Concept foundation, the whole thing will have to be scrapped, which translates to losing years of work." "The Embodiment reflects everything a mage knows, it''s the culmination of their power, so it cannot be rushed. The difference between a mage with a solid base Concept and one who is throwing shit to the wall hoping it sticks is immense." "Can''t one mage have many Concepts?" "Not really. Let me explain. Imagine your Esca is a labyrinth who goes from you to the Primeval Sea, and magic is the result of that sea water coming out. The more closed an Esca is, the less ¡®water¡¯ comes out, and the more that gets lost in the labyrinth. That stagnant water represents the corruption and miasma." "Now, the Primeval Sea can simply push more water, and solve the labyrinth by brute force, but you, like any other mage, can¡¯t do that. And not only that. For the Primeval Sea, the labyrinth is upside-down, which makes it easier for it to push the water, as opposed to the mage, who has to push countercurrent.¡± Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. "The Embodiment represents a mage who has found the correct path towards the Primeval Sea, reducing the brute force needed for it to do magic, and becoming able to use the ¡®water¡¯ straight from the source. Of course, a mage needs enough strength to achieve that. Reason why there''s three steps, and why you should wait to reach a whole Esca before trying, since there''s no one who knows any shortcuts you can exploit." Processing Tristan¡¯s words, Velvet nodded. ¡°I see¡­ What about the second step?¡± ¡°Structuralization.¡± Tristan turned off the first figurine, took it aside and grabbed the second. ¡°Once you have a solid Concept, you begin to make the Structure.¡± Activating the figurine, another circle of light appeared, this time, the symbols forming the gears had joined, becoming thread-like. The illusion held on for longer, almost three times the first. ¡°The Structure¡­¡± Tristan started, before falling silent. ¡°Is the step you¡¯re stuck on?¡± Velvet asked, suspecting the meaning behind her silence. ¡°Yes.¡± Smiling, Tristan teased her. ¡°Were you expecting me to have a complete Embodiment?¡± Hey now, that¡¯s a trap question! It doesn¡¯t matter if I say yes or no, it¡¯s the wrong answer! ¡°W-well, what about the Phorella?¡± Velvet thought quickly, choosing to deflect the question. ¡°Having a finished Embodiment for the future sounds great, but it also means that your enemies probably know about it, and have counters ready.¡± ¡°Exactly. The Phorella are mages under the Control Paradigm, and their Embodiment is called the Coronet Colosseum. It needs at least three people inside to work, as the Phorella weakens one party to buff another.¡± That means¡­ Doireann doesn¡¯t hold the position of gladiator, as I supposed at first, but of the ruler, who decides who lives and dies. Hm¡­ So the reason why the Colosseum fell down so fast was because Dioreann changed her position from Ruler to Gladiator? If the Embodiment represents the final move of a Paradigm, it makes sense that it broke upon not following the Paradigm¡¯s own rules. Control is Domination, and she lowered her position to deal with me¡­ Shaking off her thoughts, Velvet asked. ¡°At what level the Embodiment is usually completed?¡± ¡°At Two Escas at least. A mage won¡¯t possess enough strength to completely push back the Primeval¡¯s Sea current until then.¡± Tristan switched the second figurine for the third, turning it on. This time, the illusory gears were fully visible, the symbols forming them completely gone. The Embodiment differs from mages not related by blood, and sometimes even from the ones related by blood, even when they have the same Paradigm¡­ That means that even Hasdrubal can¡¯t help me. Also, there¡¯s the Chained Man thing, so mine might differ even more from other knowledge mages. Looking at the figurine illusions, Velvet pondered in silence. ¡°Someone stepped over the spiderweb formation.¡± Hyde suddenly said, startling her. Getting over the fright, she asked. ¡°Do we know who?¡± By the threads'' vibrations, Hyde could discern the intruder¡¯s height, weight, mannerisms and overall appearance. That, coupled with their everlasting knowledge, allowed them to know who was trespassing just by having seen them once. ¡°The sour-faced guy. Guess.¡± ¡°Igern!¡± Velvet said, covering the grin growing on her face with her hand, least Tristan started asking questions. ¡°Oh, they really sent him! Hahahaha, poor guy!¡± ¡°What¡¯s so funny?¡± Tristan asked, once Velvet clearly failed to keep her trembling in check. ¡°Nothing, nothing, I just remember something really hilarious. Please continue.¡± Velvet waved her hand with carelessness. Igern could wait, it wasn¡¯t like it was raining and she was leaving him outside like a wet dog. She just hoped Igern just didn¡¯t choose to barge into her house and break anything, or she would try to beat him up. Keyword try. Can I defeat Igern with the Devil¡¯s Blood buff? Velvet expected Igern to come in peace, just to negotiate the box. But she still kind of wanted to jump at him. ¡°Oh, right, that reminds me, look at this.¡± Velvet pulled out the box, showing it to Tristan, who grabbed it. ¡°It¡¯s a shield replicator. I got it from someone who was testing it with the wall to the Unnamed Forest.¡± Tristan started tinkering with it, just like Velvet did before. ¡°I tested several combinations with the pullers, but didn¡¯t manage to open i-¡± Click. The box opened, not holding on for even five seconds against Tristan. ¡°See? This is the difference between Paradigms.¡± Chapter 103. You, me, and the wall youve built between us Seeing the box pried open, Velvet leaned over, peeking at the insides. Inside were tubes with inscriptions interconnected between them by thin gears filled it, standing still. Tristan pulled out the thickest metal cylinder, which was positioned right in the middle until seconds ago. She unlocked it, taking off the metal coverture to reveal a scroll. The scroll was numbered, which could only mean that it was part of a whole series. Therefore, the scroll only revealed part of the formation used to build the wall. Makes sense, the box is too small to hold a register for the whole barrier. Tristan opened the scroll, but simply glanced over it uninterested. She couldn¡¯t replicate a whole formation, that¡¯s why the magic cylinders she used were bought and imported from other mages and places. But Velvet was a knowledge mage, so she might have some use, even when the cylinder just contained a fragment of the formation. ¡°Huh,¡± Velvet started, analyzing the symbols. Just that singular scroll showed how immense the work behind the barrier¡¯s existence was. ¡°The barrier must consume a lot just to remain active.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Tristan answered. ¡°Now, shouldn''t you go back home? It¡¯s getting late, and the hilarious thing you remembered might be waiting.¡± ¡°Ehe.¡± Velvet said, smiling sheepishly. ¡°See you in four days then?¡± They still had to talk about the incursion, and polish the details. Tristan got up, dusting off her long skirt. ¡°Yes. You can close the box on your own, right?¡± ¡°Yes, yes, I remember how you did it.¡± She simply said, slowly repeating Tristan¡¯s steps in reverse, putting the box back together. ¡°Good.¡± Going back to the mechanic suit, Tristan went back to work, as Velvet picked up and cleaned the table to leave. Once everything was cleaned, she went to the exit. ¡°Oh, right.¡± Tristan stopped her. ¡°Next time, bring spicy food. I like beef.¡± Of course! Just pay me for it first! Was what Velvet wanted to say. ¡°Okay.¡± Was what she ended up saying. ¡­ The trip back to the hut was dark, the moon being already out. By what Hyde had told her, Igern hadn¡¯t entered her hut, choosing to wait outside. He¡¯s probably smoking. Ah, I want to wait until he¡¯s about to leave and surprise him¡­ Even when she was thinking of doing that, she still walked towards her hut at a stroll pace. ¡­ Igern hadn¡¯t left yet, and, effectively, he was leaning against a tree, smoking. Just as Velvet got her paper figurines ready. Spending one to copy Lox¡¯s spell, she fell into the ¡®Ignored¡¯ state. She then used two more, one to create a copy of herself and one to make the copy also fall on the ¡®Ignored¡¯ state. This was the same thing she did against Lox and Doireann, except the part of hiding her copy. Even if she didn¡¯t want to fight, Velvet wasn¡¯t wasting an opportunity to test her new skills. ¡­ Igern took a puff of his cigarette, realizing it was almost consumed. He put it off, pressing the tip with his fingers, befor- If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. Snap! Turning around instantly, he grabbed the air to his left, instants before a hand touched his face. ¡°Oh¡­¡± ¡®Velvet¡¯ said. ¡°Seems like I can¡¯t approach all the way.¡± He noticed my presence before reacting, but waited until the last moment to stop me¡­ Igern, you sneaky little thing, trying to mislead me¡­ Since her real body was further away, Velvet could observe Igern¡¯s micro reactions, uncovering the trap. The fake Velvet smiled sheepishly when Igern didn¡¯t release the hold on her wrist. ¡°Were you waiting for me? That¡¯s so cute!¡± Igern looked at her in silence, looking from her hand to her face, before squinting. ¡°You¡¯re fake.¡± Ah, caught. ¡°But my feelings for you are real!¡± The fake Velvet said, as Igern¡¯s hand emitted a faint blue light. Velvet shut down her connection to the paper figurine, dispelling the illusion before the curse Igern was doing reached her. The abandoned paper figurine floated down slowly, and Igern turned to look around the forest, trying to find where the real Velvet was hiding. Clearing her throat, Velvet revealed herself, away from him. ¡°Hello! Did you bring me flowers? A box of sweets?¡± Igern grimaced. ¡°I-¡± ¡°Just so you know, Alrai brought me a cake, so you should do better than him!¡± Interrupted by Velvet, Igern frowned. Biting back some comments, probably threats, he tried to speak again. ¡°I¡¯ve just come here to take the box.¡± ¡°Without paying? I mean, your company is priceless, but I only take deals in cash or info!¡± Velvet said, smiling, as Igern¡¯s frown deepened. ¡°I¡¯ll pay.¡± Igern was confident in his skill to overpower Velvet, what he wasn¡¯t confident on was that Velvet wouldn¡¯t break the box out of pettiness. ¡°How much do you want?¡± The moment he finished speaking, a bad feeling crept through his back, as Velvet leaned forward and grinned. ¡°You¡¯re bad at negotiating, aren¡¯t you?¡± Igern squinted at her. ¡°I am more adept at beating smug mages up.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure you are!¡± She made sure to put her smuggest smile before saying that. ¡°So, tell me¡­ how much money did they give you to negotiate?¡± ¡°That''s none of your business.¡± ¡°Oh, in that case, I hope you¡¯re not in a hurry, because I plan to negotiate for the whooole night.¡± Velvet motioned to her house. ¡°You might even want to go inside, I¡¯ll even serve tea.¡± ¡°I do not.¡± Why are you so difficult¡­ Velvet wanted to sigh. ¡°The solution is at the tip of your fingers. Or I can just simply open the box¡¯s offer at a million auris, and you can start lowering.¡± ¡°It isn¡¯t worth that much, and you know it.¡± Igern said between his teeth. ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ What price are you thinking about?¡± In Velvet¡¯s opinion, the box was worth around 7000 auris, but she hoped Igern carried 10000 to negotiate. Igern fell silent, and Velvet saw him, for some reason, clench his hand as if he was carrying a weapon. Why is your patience so short¡­ I kind of understand Dianthus. If I also was immortal, I would tease you relentlessly¡­ ¡°Five thousand?¡± Igern dragged the answer, as if he was forcing himself to talk. ¡°No way.¡± Velvet pulled out the box, repeated the motions Tristan did to open it and showed the insides to Igern. They were still far apart, so he couldn¡¯t simply jump and snatch the box. ¡°Without taking into consideration the materials and the skill employed to fabricate this artifact, inside there is months of work.¡± She wasn¡¯t sure of the months thing, but the box was probably unique. Igern didn¡¯t look very impressed, or interested, truth to be told, but the box wasn¡¯t for him. ¡°Seven thousand?¡± ¡°Did you pick the money yourself or did a superior give it to you?¡± Igern let out a sigh, before taking out a black ball and tossing it to Velvet. ¡°That¡¯s all the negotiation money.¡± Picking the ball, Velvet was almost right. Inside, 8500 auris waited. ¡°Aww, thanks for your patronage!¡± Igern¡¯s eyebrows twitched. ¡°Sorry, sorry, I¡¯ll return the box now.¡± While closing the box, so that it wasn¡¯t damaged, she asked. ¡°Anyway, why does Arhontissa want to copy the Mergifari¡¯s barrier? Do they need to seal something?¡± Her attention was on the box, but she still observed Igern¡¯s expressions. He showed confusion for a few seconds, before widening his eyes, his expression going totally pale. ¡°Wh-¡± Velvet was going to ask, but she sensed an extreme hostility, jumping back. Igern had summoned one of his ice lances, and was gripping it so tight his knuckles went white. Both of them stared at each other for a few silent seconds, before Igern unsummoned the weapon. He took a deep breath, before extending his hand. ¡°The box.¡± Velvet finished closing the box, put it on the floor and took several steps back. Igern picked the box in silence, and left without saying goodbye. He wanted to destroy the box. Velvet thought, looking at Igern¡¯s disappearing figure. Chapter 104. Void companion Once Igern finally left, Velvet went to repair the damaged spiderwebs with Hyde¡¯s help. ¡°Getting Tristan¡¯s security system would be reassuring¡­¡± She said. ¡°Haha, she gave me her old alchemy set first, I got her old hut, and now I might get her old security system.¡± ¡°It almost feels like she''s giving me hand-me-downs.¡± ¡°Well, they really are hand-me-downs.¡± Velvet fell silent for a few seconds. ¡°Hyde! I am speaking to you!¡± ¡°Oh, I thought you were monologuing.¡± The spider said, unapologetic. ¡°I haven¡¯t seen you using the alchemy set yet.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t have time¡­¡± And when she did, there was already someone else taking care of doing potions, like Skogul. ¡°Once the Devil¡¯s Blood buff wears out, I¡¯ll join some class.¡± ¡°Those Arhontissian mages are probably waiting for the buff to wear out before taking revenge. You need to hurry up.¡± Of course. She wasn¡¯t so naive to just expect them to forgive her and move on. They simply were biding their time. But Velvet wasn¡¯t the kind to just sit still and let herself be caught. No way. Saying that, she still needed to sleep. A tired mind was easy to trick, after all. ¡­ From those three days she had been unconscious, she didn¡¯t remember having any dreams. Not from the Chained Man, and not from Lothrigern. The last thing she did was pull some chains from the dream to reality, just to seal Frenese. Those chains still surrounded the book, but she hadn¡¯t checked if doing that had any effect on the dream. Maybe the Chained Man has been freed. Velvet thought, before getting into bed, falling asleep. ¡­ Like always, the dream was pitch black and silent, the darkness enveloping her from all sides. In the depths, she saw the Chained Man, motionless like always. He didn¡¯t look any different. ¡°Of course, I just used one chain. No way he felt it.¡± Velvet said, moving to the side. Click. A small force pulled from the center of her chest, making her stop moving. The only visible thing in the dream was the Chained Man, so she was unable to see what pulled her. Dragging her hand upwards, she touched something. Neither hot nor cold, the temperature of the thing was the same as hers, which was the reason why she didn¡¯t feel it until now. Sliding her hand around the object, she had no doubt about what it was. A chain. Pressed against the center of her chest, digging under, it crossed the sternum. Following the chain fragment, she realized it was connected to the Chained Man, or, at least, pointed to him. Even when she pulled on it, it didn¡¯t hurt, as if the chain had become part of her own body. Slowly, she moved her hands, putting one at the center of her chest, and another at the furthest point of the chain she could reach. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. She took a step forward. If it was a normal chain, doing so would allow her to collect a part of the chain, which would mean that the chain had a limited length, not going on forever, and that she could reach the Chained Man just by walking forward. Unfortunately, the chain remained the same, and moved with Velvet. So I still can¡¯t go forward¡­ but now I¡¯m unable to go backwards. Did bringing the chains to the material realm to seal Frenese establish a connection? As she thought of that, another chain started to appear, also from the center of her chest, just that, instead of going towards the Chained Man, it went to her right. Like the previous time, she first pulled on it. Click. The chain strained, as if tied up to something. The something in question reacted to her pull, slowly uncurling itself, raising its body. Velvet felt the chain in her hand curving upwards, allowing her to more or less uncover the newcomer¡¯s height, even when she didn¡¯t see them. Swallowing uncomfortably, she voiced out her conclusion. ¡°Frenese?¡± If bringing a part of the chain out was enough to form a connection from her to the Chained man, then it probably also connected her to Frenese. Silence answered her. She didn¡¯t know what was worse; seeing Frenese in person right in front of her, or not seeing him, but feeling his presence in the darkness. Both were awful options. The chains moved slightly to the sides, as if he was looking around, before lowering and ¡®coiling¡¯ once again. Don¡¯t ignore me just to go back to sleep¡­ She pulled the chain once again. The Devil¡¯s Deal prohibited them from harming each other (even when it was mostly for Velvet¡¯s safety), and, since Andras¡¯ name had power here, the deal probably remained in effect. That being said, she didn¡¯t dare to approach him. The Frenese in front of her wasn¡¯t inside a book, and, even if she didn¡¯t see him, she recalled perfectly his appearance, which allowed her to fill in the gaps made by the darkness. ¡°Frenese. Frenese.¡± She started doing small tugs to the chain. ¡°Hey, hey hey hey.¡± A low growl, who closely resembled a groan, came from the chain¡¯s end. ¡°For a knowledge mage, you seem to have forgotten what I did to the last mages who played with my seal.¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t, but, as a knowledge mage, I also remember you had outside help for breaching the seal.¡± Frenese got up once again, and Velvet forced herself to remain still so as to not take a step back. He walked slowly around her, the chain moving together with him. Even when Frenese resembled a wolf, his skin was formed by leech-like tendrils, and he made a wet, raw meat squelch sound as he moved. ¡°Why do you think someone wanted to release you?¡± The dream was probably the best place to ask dangerous questions, since only the two would hear them. She still didn¡¯t know Udulluay¡¯s intentions, and his help concealing her deal with Frenese didn¡¯t mean he wouldn¡¯t snitch to a third party. Someone like the Director. She also wanted to see if he was open for conversation. To tell the truth, she wanted to ask if he knew anything about her dream, but doing so might provoke him to ask for one of the ten wishes. ¡°Why would anyone release a devil? To cause death and destruction. The name devil is not for show.¡± Frenese stopped his walk close to her shoulder, tempting her into turning to look at him. ¡°The same reason anyone would make a deal with one.¡± She didn¡¯t move. She wasn¡¯t going to refute Frenese¡¯s words, since he was right. If she got too pressed against a mage, ambushed or overpowered, she harbored no qualms about using one of the petitions for a power boost. Velvet couldn¡¯t afford losing. For her, defeat meant to lose it all. ¡°We can simply hope there¡¯s no need to reach that point.¡± She finally said. ¡°It always reaches that point.¡± Frenese said. Both of them remained in silence for a while. Playing with the chain, Velvet chose to ask. ¡°What do you think about this place? About the Chained Man?¡± Frenese moved, now standing behind her. ¡°You don¡¯t want my opinion, you want my knowledge.¡± Velvet smiled, caught. ¡°Is the knowledge you possess worth one wish?¡± A wet noise answered her as the chain lowered. Frenese had laid down again, this time closer to her. ¡°No. At most is an array of conjectures and snippets of information, not a real answer. But I won¡¯t give them for free.¡± She refrained from commenting. Still, what Frenese might consider conjectures and ideas wasn¡¯t what Velvet considered as such. He was still a devil, old and wise. And it wasn¡¯t like she had anyone else to ask. Hyde didn¡¯t know anything, and Lothrigern didn¡¯t listen to her, having his own agenda. Frenese¡¯s conjectures might be the biggest step for Velvet. ¡°It¡¯s a deal, then.¡± Chapter 105. Third Name, eleven stars. After Velvet said those words, the second petition was made, with eight remaining. Even when they were inside a dream, the deal went through. Since pronouncing Andras¡¯ name provoked a reaction in the dream, it made sense His authority reached inside too. Lothrigern had warned her from saying it too much, after all. Frenese didn¡¯t move, but Velvet could hear his skin leeches wriggling around. ¡°First, you need to acknowledge the situation in this dream. Why was he chained and not killed?¡± Velvet spoke. ¡°He doesn¡¯t need food or water, and, even when the chains are digging in his body, he never bleeds out.¡± The meaning behind her words were clear. Immortality. Humming, Frenese continued. ¡°The only reasons something can live once totally suppressed are: usefulness or True immortality. For someone to be sealed by the Father of Devils and others, usefulness can be discarded. Leaving immortality in its place.¡± Hm, as a devil, he only made sure to mention Andras¡¯ title. Velvet took note of that, but didn¡¯t say anything about it. "Like a chosen one?" "Chosen ones don''t have True immortality. Once their fate is fulfilled, they die like normal humans. True immortality is exactly what it sounds like. Someone unable to die. Someone who holds a position above the conceptual Goddess of Death, becoming unable to have their existence severed.¡± Velvet listened in silence. ¡°That category belongs to Higher Beings. Higher than deities and higher than conceptual gods.¡± Frenese stopped, waiting for her to understand him. "Like the Father of Devils and the Father of Fairies?" She said, not using Their names, but Their titles, as to not activate the dream¡¯s formation. Or summon Lothrigern. "Exactly. But there are more aside from them. For example, the Primordial Devils." Primordial¡­ Velvet mused over that word. Frenese called himself a devil, not a Primordial Devil. "What''s the difference?" "Primordial Devils were the first prototypal creations who would become devils in the future. Immortal, they represented the evil, dark and cruel side of creation, inhabiting the material realm together with primordial demons before humans were created." "And what happened?" She asked. Since their contract implied that the information obtained from using a petition had to be satisfactory to her, Frenese was giving some unrelated but useful information as an addition. "Humans happened. Humans had no possibility of survival with Primordial Devils and demons around, and, after two human extinctions, the Creators killed all the primordial demons, and sealed all the Primordial Devils for eternity.¡± Velvet¡¯s smile twitched at that. ¡°That¡­ does differ from the Tales of Creation.¡± The Tales didn¡¯t mention any extinction, and that humans were created by the terrenal gods, like Dodon and Arhontissa, not by other entities. ¡°Our Deal prevents me from lying, so either what I believe is a lie, or what you¡¯ve been told is a lie. Or maybe both are right at once, who knows?¡± Using a rather sarcastic ¡®I am right¡¯ tone, Frenese continued. ¡°After that, they created Hell, and put the newest species of devils and demons inside." She sighted. As a human who had seen a devil in action, her feelings about the idea of a more dangerous, unkillable version of them were more than unnerving. "Do you think the chained man is a Primordial Devil?" "Of that, I''m not sure. Primordial Devils aren''t the only immortal beings permanently sealed who exist. The Creators never were picky about sealing what cannot be killed, and killing what didn¡¯t need to be sealed." Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°Then why make them unkillable?¡± She asked. ¡°That¡¯s something you should ask Them, not me.¡± Velvet pondered for a bit. "Apart from the Father of Devils and the Father of Fairies, how many Creators exist?" She had never heard that term until Frenese used it, but it didn¡¯t take too much brainpower to connect the dots as to who Frenese was referring to. If she were to ask him now what the Creators were, he probably would say something like ¡®Knowledge mage, did you even listen?¡¯. "Eleven. Calling them Creators is simplifying it a lot.¡± Frenese let out a deep sigh, who resembled a growl more than any other thing. ¡°They are the harbingers of life, the surrogates of creation itself, the stars of continuity.¡± ¡°They are the Deriliam." ¡­ ¡°Deriliam¡­¡± Velvet repeated to herself. That¡¯s what Andras and Lothrigern were. She didn¡¯t have a name to refer to Them before, but now she had. She started thinking, her brain connecting everything Frenese was saying to what she already knew, starting to drag out some conclusions. For starters, Frenese said that there were only eleven of them, so the idea of the Chained Man being a Primordial Devil could be discarded. Why? Because Lothrigern showed up without a summoning chant. For a Deriliam known to have the ability to show up anywhere His name was said, corrupting whoever said His name, causing their death, He had allowed Velvet to use His name a few times, one of those with a summoning chant. And she was still alive. Chanting His name only made Him send a pixie for protection, who didn¡¯t even ¡®ask¡¯ for a gift before leaving. That could only mean one thing. Lothrigern wanted something from the Chained Man, something He had been unable to get after all the years he was chained, and was using Velvet as a way to get it. What will happen to me once He gets it? She wasn¡¯t really optimistic about her future if Lothrigern obtained whatever He was after. But, that also meant that her chances of eventually reaching the Chained Man weren¡¯t zero. If Lothrigern putting some ¡®trust¡¯ in her meant something, that was the biggest possibility. Of course, that came with another question. ¡°Why do you think I can enter this place?¡± That was one of the things she still had no answer to, and hadn¡¯t obtained a single clue. Frenese¡¯s silence didn¡¯t give her any hope, and he soon confirmed her suspicions. ¡°To know that, first we should know who the sealed one is, why he was sealed and how he was sealed.¡± Sure, just lemme ask Lothrigern real quick. Velvet wanted to say. ¡°Do you have the name of another Deriliam? This place reacted to the Father of Devils¡¯ name, showing part of its formation and almost making me lose control.¡± Frenese stared at her in silence. She didn¡¯t see him stare at her, but she felt it. ¡°And you want me to say one to see what happens?¡± ¡°No.¡± Velvet shook her head, even when she wasn¡¯t sure if Frenese could see her, or was simply pretending to. ¡°The deal prevents us from trying to harm one another, which I¡¯m sure will happen if you do that. Just give me the name in pieces.¡± ¡°Ha.¡± Frenese started. ¡°Every name costs one petition.¡± Velvet thought he was mocking her at first, but she soon realized it wasn¡¯t a laugh. ¡°Ah. This one is included on the petition you just did.¡± ¡°Shi. But the next ones won¡¯t be.¡± ¡°This Deriliam¡­ what did They create?¡± She interrupted to ask, feeling the dream darkness shift, even when the name wasn¡¯t fully being said. Was it the intent? Even so, she still wanted to know. Andras created demons and devils, while Lothrigern created fairies. Which Creator was this one? ¡°Mor. What did She create, do you ask?¡± Frenese let out a single chuckle. ¡°Ga. You should know already, after rejecting your chance at reincarnation.¡± Mages were unable to reincarnate. Once a human soaked their body, their mind and their soul under the Primeval Sea, becoming a mage, their chances of a next life ended. In some way, mages progressively abandoned their humanity, until they died or the corruption became too much. Velvet was already aware of that, having taken that step in the known. ¡°Nia. And choosing to carry Her eye.¡± Frenese stopped talking, which meant he was done. He didn¡¯t explicitly say what the Deriliam created, but gave enough clues for Velvet to get her own answers. The Mother of Witches, Haashi Morgania. Chapter 106. Botomless sea, sticky allies Haashi Morgania, the reason why mages existed. The Creator of the Primeval Sea. Even when Velvet had dived on its surface, she still didn¡¯t understand much about the Primeval Sea. Only witches, who had sunk in it, and who got closer to the bottom, did; and that caused them to start eating mages. The Primeval Sea¡¯s influence, and by extension, Haashi¡¯s, could also be considered the voice of corruption who tried to speak to Velvet, and to any mage who got close to losing control, tempting them to take the last step into the abyss. Haashi Morgania. Just by knowing Her name, her body went numb, as her Esca came alive, blinking and looking side to side. One blink, the feeling of the eye rolling to look left, up and right. Another blink, left, right. It¡¯s too dark to see anything except the Chained Man, but that¡¯s for me; I don¡¯t know if it would be the same for the thing behind the Esca. She remained motionless and in silence, until the Esca stopped moving and went back to normal. Even so, she made sure to wait some seconds more, until she had the certainty that it was over. Closing and opening her hand slowly, she pushed down the uncomfortable feeling of a part of her own body escaping her control and acting on its own. Frenese didn¡¯t do or say anything, but she felt the devil¡¯s attention on her. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± She said to herself, before looking towards Frenese. ¡°I got it. You can leave now." Touching Frenese''s chain, she made him disappear from the dream, not giving him any chance to speak. The same way I brought him here, I can push him out... She was lucky that repeating the things she did to bring him here worked to bring him out, because if not, she might have spoken too soon. As a knowledge mage, she knew the chances of that working were fifty percent, but, if she won that gamble, Frenese would believe that she had more control over the dream that she really had. The reason she wanted Frenese to believe in her abilities was simple. It would make him more cooperative. His goal was freedom, but devils were prideful, so, if Velvet acted too naive and clueless, he might refuse to cooperate without employing the pact. There was a difference between a person having a sword without knowing how to use it, and a person having a sword, knowing some techniques, but not knowing the sword''s origins. Both were still dangerous, carrying a weapon, but one was more than the other. Now, she had shown him some control, kicking him out of the dream without hesitation. It¡¯s so unfortunate that he isn¡¯t a knowledge devil¡­ if Hyde''s obsession with the dream is something to go for, any knowledge devil would become cooperative just with a glance. She sighted, still pondering. That being said, Frenese being here means that if I chain someone, I can bring them here, say Andras¡¯ name and make them lose control. I wonder if the actual chains would do something. They''ve remained pretty quiet since that day. Velvet looked around, expecting the chains to come out just to prove her wrong, but nothing else happened. She didn¡¯t try to call them out, anyway. Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. Since no more ¡®surprises¡¯ appeared, she now had two options. Say the Deriliam''s name to see if she got something, or wait until she dealt with Tristan¡¯s and the Arhontissan mages issues. Can I take another close loss of control? That was the biggest issue. The more she tested the limits, the easiest she could sink in the future. Like slowly erasing a barrier, the day would come when nothing stopped her transformation, making her a witch. That fear was one of the things preventing her from saying the name. The other one was a hypothesis. The hypothesis of Frenese testing her. As he had said, there were eleven Deriliams, with each one being the Creator of at least one species. Of nine options, he chose to give her the name of the Mother of Witches, something dangerous for Velvet to know, seen in the Esca¡¯s reaction. Velvet had told him previously about how saying Andras¡¯ name almost made her lose control completely, so his choice in the name given did matter. And he chose the Deriliam Velvet was mostly under. Is he testing my patience? To see if I¡¯m so eager to discover the Chained Man¡¯s identity that I would die to get answers? She was sure that saying Haashi¡¯s name would straight up kill her. Frenese, you clever bastard¡­ no wonder he had been so eager to tell me the name. Really, a devil is always a devil. If she were to die from saying that name, the Devil¡¯s Deal wouldn¡¯t be triggered, since Frenese didn¡¯t tempt her to use it, simply giving it to her. As if he had given her a loaded revolver, and she had proceeded to shoot her own head. Frenese might have given her the gun, but she was the one who pressed the trigger pointing at herself. I cannot use this name. She decided, regretfully backing down. ¡°Did you see that?¡± She spoke to the Chained Man, who didn¡¯t react at all. ¡°I offer him a chance for freedom and he tries to kill me.¡± ¡°I only asked him for a teensy bit of power and knowledge, I swear. Devils will be devils, I guess.¡± ¡°But you will be nice, right? Primordial Devil or something else, you will behave nicely if I reach you, right?¡± Velvet nodded, as if the motionless, inexpressive, silent reaction was actually a mutual conversation. ¡°See? I knew you would be reasonable!¡± She laughed towards the void. ¡°Haha.. ha. Ejem.¡± Finally stopping playing, she took a deep breath, waiting for the dream and night to pass. ¡­ It was morning when she woke up, stretching on her bed, allowing herself a few seconds of laziness. ¡°It¡¯s done.¡± Hyde ¡®greeted¡¯ her, sensing she was awake. ¡°Mmm?¡± She asked, her eyes still closed, the time to get out of bed closer and closer. Hyde didn¡¯t answer, choosing instead to come out of his pocket dimension. Velvet opened an eye out of curiosity, feeling him crawling from her ear, to her neck, shoulder and stopping at the center of her chest, staring at her. Velvet wasn¡¯t scared of bugs, but a fist-sized spider walking all over her gave her goosebumps nonetheless. Hyde wasn¡¯t a hairy spider, but, like all spiders, his legs were sticky, to crawl over walls and other places. Suddenly, Hyde clicked his front legs, as ten small spider silk figurines appeared from thin air, hanging from the ceiling by a thin thread. The scene with Velvet on the bed and the figurines hanging felt like she was a baby on a crib, and Hyde had hanged one of those mobile things to pacify babies. He did that on purpose. She decided, proceeding to trap Hyde under her hand, caging him. Even so, it didn¡¯t take long for Velvet to know what was done. Hyde had digested Frenese¡¯s blood, advancing as a demon. When she dropped the bloody chalice on her head, part of it was to make the liquid cross Hyde¡¯s pocket dimension, allowing him to collect enough blood. Unlike Velvet, who used it all at once to seal the book, Hyde had the opportunity to store it and use it in a more resourceful way. Of course, Hyde was also smaller than her, so he didn¡¯t need to drink the same quantity. Even so, back to the present, that worked great for her. With Hyde being stronger now, she won an ally who was always next to her. And two knowledge beings always thought more than one. As she rejoiced, Hyde slid his front legs through the space between her fingers, pressing his head against the ¡®cage bars¡¯, tickling her skin. ¡°Stop dozing off, we have stuff to do.¡± Chapter 107. Handles After playing a bit with Hyde, which was an innuendo for giving him some materials, papers and some All-purpose worms, she had breakfast, dressed up, and went to the market. She wanted to see what 33500 auris could afford. With Tristan¡¯s ¡®offer¡¯, she possibly was getting a defensive construct, but it was one only usable for her hut, and not portable. She still had the umbrella, so her current need for defensible artifacts was zero. What she really needed was something like Sinoe¡¯s Baslard, a short distance offensive weapon who could replace the knife when it was unusable. Like right now, for example. Velvet wasn¡¯t from a combat focused Paradigm, so she didn¡¯t have the raw strength to manage big or heavy weapons, not to say about having the speed, resistance or stamina to hold her ground against a combat mage in close distance. That being said, having the option was always the best choice. Sinoe¡¯s Baslard had helped her a lot, even when she never used it in a direct confrontation. Of course, truly lethal things weren¡¯t sold to novice mages, like guns, big explosives and dangerous artifacts. That didn¡¯t mean they couldn¡¯t make them, anyway. In the past, when she was on the Mergifari¡¯s Market, the one under Udulluay¡¯s concealment spell, she got the ¡®Crafting for Dummies¡¯ book, together with an assortment of random pieces. Even though she still hadn¡¯t tried to make any real artifact, she had read the book, together with a bunch of Tristan¡¯s blueprints. She wanted to craft a staff. Not a heavy one, but one she could use to attack mages who got too close. Her main idea was using the cursed mirror she got from Agorn, remodel it as a staff, and use it to reflect and let the evil spirit inside curse and possess the enemy. The mirror, as it was right now, was hard and slow to use, so it was the perfect test subject for Velvet. She would also need a handle for the staff. Enchanted wood was good and rather cheap, but it was pretty stiff, not useful for her mental blueprint on how the staff had to look. The final artifact had to be mechanical, able to open and close to prevent mirror accidents from happening. That meant that the artifact should be made using a metallic material, like silver or iron. She didn¡¯t want to be a cheapass that conformed with a low quality artifact, but she also didn¡¯t want to pay for the best materials on the market, like Tristan did. ¡­ As she entered one of the shops for artificers (not the ones who sold artifacts, but the ones who sold materials and pieces to make them), she went towards the place where staff¡¯s handles were shown. Ignoring the different materials, there were two types, the ¡®clean¡¯ ones and the engraved ones. Like Tristan¡¯s cylinders, the engraved handles were the ones already made with a clear goal in mind, containing an engraved formation. The ones being sold were for common staffs: shields, spells potentiators¡­ There was a sign offering the service to fabricate custom made handles, for 800 auris at minimum. Under that sign, there was another, selling the tools to make engraved formations. The price varied based on the material who would be worked on. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. Wood was the cheapest, since a knife and some patience did the same work, same as cloth, doable with a needle and some thread, but the ones for metal, glass and bone were more specialized. As she looked through the sign¡¯s contents, a voice sounded next to her. A salesman''s voice. ¡°Good morning! I see you¡¯re interested in engraving! Glass, right?¡± The seller, a guy not much older than her, which meant he was the owner¡¯s selected or a family member, grabbed one of the engraving tools, showing it to her. ¡°What makes you think I want to engrave glass? I like fashion a lot, maybe I want a magic hat.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t make your clothes.¡± The guy said, with a lot of confidence. ¡°And you looked more towards the glass handles than the others.¡± A knowledge mage, I see. Even when she had made sure to look a bit at everything, in case someone was watching her, knowledge mages were still a pain to fool. Even so, she didn¡¯t want the glass ones, but the metal ones. She had looked longer at the stone ones, and then slightly less at the glass ones, just to fool any fellow knowledge mages who were watching her. She was one, after all. And the mage speaking to her being also one could only mean one thing. One, he knew who Velvet was. He knew she was a knowledge mage, so he picked the glass option, not the stone one, who would''ve been the safe choice for someone who didn¡¯t know her Paradigm. I¡¯m so famous, and yet no one gives me discounts. C¡¯mooon, the best thing to make someone lower their guard is giving them stuff for low prices! ¡°Haha, yes. Glass is just so pretty, isn¡¯t it? The way it reflects the light of magic spells is mesmerizing.¡± She said, not interested in the glass engravings at all. Making a glass staff to contain a cursed mirror was a ridiculous idea, but the less a potential enemy knew about her, the better. She was planning to build the staff under Tristan¡¯s concealment artifact, so there was no need to be honest. She could simply buy the engravers for glass, stone and metal. They would be useful eventually, and the more things she could do on her own, the better she would fare once escaping the Mergifari. ¡°Glass works great for illusion spells.¡± The seller said, proceeding to show her a finished handle. The transparency of the glass was interrupted by sigil markings, which spiraled around. ¡°Able to create a myriad of shapes, but the fragilest of materials.¡± ¡°What about stone?¡± ¡°Rough. Harder to break, but inflexible. Shields and protection spells work the best under it. Of course, it depends on the type of stone. A handle engraved by rubies won¡¯t work the same as one made with agates.¡± ¡°Metal?¡± ¡°Enabler. The kind of material who works as a support for another, either to seal it or power up it. Silver and gold are the most common choices.¡± ¡°I assume it¡¯s silver for sealing and gold for buffing?¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Velvet started, looking around. ¡°If I buy three sets, do I get a discount?¡± ¡°Our materials are one of the best, we only make discounts for purchases over 20 thousand auris.¡± ¡°Oh, I see.¡± Both of them fell silent, before he smiled at her. ¡°I think introductions are in order. My name is Harlan Traversa. It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you.¡± Using all her willpower not to choke on her own tongue, she forced a smile. ¡°Velvet Consestella Dobastro, the pleasure is mine.¡± The Traversa were the family Tristan wanted to steal from in four days. ¡°Say Velvet¡­¡± Harlan started, using his seller¡¯s voice. ¡°Would you be interested in our engraving course? Just by buying one set of engraving tools you get access to the starter class.¡± Huh, that¡¯s just some fancy way to sidestep the Mergifari¡¯s course directions, and keep the money from the classes. But, since they aren¡¯t saying anything, I guess the Mergifari doesn¡¯t mind. Or they do, but are waiting. I doubt Udulluay doesn¡¯t know it. ¡°When does it start?¡± She asked, looking through the different tools. ¡°In half an hour.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ I¡¯ll think about it. I want to see other shops first.¡± She took a step back, looking at the exit. Harlan''s eyes widened slighty, and he cleared his throat. ¡°Our shop has the best tools and materials on the Mergifari. None of the others can compare.¡± ¡°I''m sure of that, but¡­¡± She looked at Harlan with a sad expression. ¡°I¡¯m not a professional at making artifacts, and I simply wanted to buy a bunch of stuff to try.¡± ¡°After all, you don''t have discounts for buying in small bulk.¡± She added, a second later, once her previous statement had sinked in. The corners of Harlan¡¯s mouth twitched, understanding what Velvet clearly wanted. ¡°I-I¡¯m sure we can reach an agreement.¡± Chapter 108. Two can keep a secret Harlan considered himself a good seller, really. As a knowledge mage, he could answer every question of any product, comparing them to the ones of other shops, and convince anyone of the superiority of the Traversa¡¯s quality. Because they had the best materials, and no one could doubt that. Even so, dealing with his fellow knowledge mages was a pain. Right now, his time was being spent watching Velvet pick random things, him saying the price and Velvet saying ¡®It¡¯s too expensive, too expensive¡¯ before she tried going to the door. Just to get stopped by Harlan again. Now, if it was any other mage, he wouldn¡¯t even bother, but it was the current owner of Frenese¡¯s Book. Harlan didn¡¯t have any personal interest in it. He liked crafting, not politics. But the Traversa had a nice relationship with the Tarius, the previous owners of the book. By building a supplier relationship with Velvet, the Traversa could make an offer for Frenese¡¯s Book in place of the Tarius, who were forbidden from approaching Velvet. That would be a debt the Tarius would have to remember. She is unable to use the book in any way, after all. Just the siphoning formation to get his blood needs at least ten mages, and she is alone. The book, for her, is a nuisance. Of course, as a mage, the best option is to hold onto it until an irresistible offer appears. So, as long as I¡¯m the one doing the offer, the family would be extremely proud of me. She can act as smug as she wants, but it''s obvious that Frenese won¡¯t be helping a novice mage in any way. Money is more helpful than a stubborn sealed devil. ¡­ ¡°Ngh¡­ I really like the glass ones, but metal is better for certain things¡­¡± Velvet said, once again putting something down and grabbing something else. Harlan¡¯s customer smile didn¡¯t change. ¡°If I know your budget, I can give you a personalized offer including as many things as you like as possible.¡± ¡°Let me think about it¡­¡± Velvet pondered for a few seconds. ¡°7000 auris. That¡¯s how much I want to spend on materials for artifacts.¡± She didn¡¯t miss the slightly widening of Harlan¡¯s eyes. For a novice mage not pertaining to a family, 7000 auris was quite the sum to spend. ¡°And the material you want to work the most with is?¡± ¡°I like stone, glass and metal.¡± She didn¡¯t give him a preference, not interested in giving him any knowledge about her. Harlan started picking stuff from the shelves, and putting it on a table. He wasn''t the only one working, so it wasn¡¯t like there were unattended customers. He didn¡¯t sell to official mages, for example. Novice mages didn¡¯t really interact with official mages who weren¡¯t their Selectors and vice versa. The biggest and almost only exception being classes. Velvet simply stared at him with interest, not helping at all, letting him be the one choosing everything for her. Harlan wasn¡¯t an idiot, he knew that Velvet was waiting for him to make a 7000 auris worth package just to say ¡®Great! Lemme see what the other shops offer me for 7000 auris¡¯. And he was ready, ready to answer with ¡®If, after buying this package you find a better, legit offer in another Mergifari official shop, we will compensate you for the difference¡¯. At this point he wasn''t doing it for the devil¡¯s book, he simply wanted the bragging rights of getting a deal worth 7000 auris. So he used all his knowledge to plan what to say, what to do, what to grab and what to avoid. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. It didn¡¯t matter what Velvet complained about, he had all the answers ready, all the options planned, down to every little detail. Sweating slightly after all that work, Harlan smiled proudly at Velvet, motioning to the pile of objects upon the table. ¡°Here it is. This is the best offer you¡¯ll get.¡± Velvet looked at the neatly piled things. Harlan had included the engravers for stone, glass and metal, next to an array of different materials, which included staff handles. As much as he wanted to start speaking, Harlan waited until she finished checking all the stu- ¡°Okay, deal.¡± ¡°If, afte- Ah?¡± Stunned for a few seconds, Harlan stared at her in silence, his mouth open. ¡°The container for carrying all of this is included in the price, right?¡± ¡°Ah, uh¡­ yes.¡± Clearing his mind fast, he corrected himself. ¡°Yes, of course!¡± You didn¡¯t even finish checking the stuff! Complain about something! I know exactly what to say! For a knowledge mage, there was no worse thing than having the chance of proving their knowledge taken from them. ¡°Great! Now, pack it up, the course is gonna start soon.¡± Velvet said, watching how Harlan¡¯s smile flinched again. As he started packing the stuff, he expected Velvet to just stare at him mockingly, but she seemed to be taking out and counting the money. He¡­ wasn¡¯t going to complain about that one. ¡­ Once everything had been stored on a container made to transport crafting materials safely, Harlan offered to accompany her to the engraving class. Since his Selector was the teacher, he also had to attend it. There were ten minutes before the class started, but Harlan had to get some stuff ready. Not like Velvet planned to help him, anyway. She could simply wait the ten minutes sitting and relaxing¡­ No, she really couldn¡¯t. Those ten minutes would be spent making charms. She also wanted to appear more ¡®relaxed¡¯ to anyone who was watching her. She could even play the part, since Hyde was guarding her. Yeah, that was the perfect plan. Harlan opened the door, entering, and she followed suit. Inside, there were three mages. Two were together, very together, on the side opposite the door, talking, and the other one was laying back on the chair, his eyes closed. Pale hair, a tacky white coat and an air of self importance without the need of opening his mouth. It was Dianthus, alright. Harlan cleared his throat, not because of the Chosen One being this close to slipping backwards from the chair, cracking his skull; but because of the other two mages, who were more than just friends and wanted everyone else to know. In the end, the noise worked more to wake Dianthus up than to stop the other mages, who simply glared at him annoyed. Dianthus, who blinked slowly, looking towards the noise. Velvet looked at Dianthus. And Dianthus looked at her. Then, his sight went down her arm. Frenese¡¯s sudden voice in her head almost made her flinch. ¡°He knows we¡¯ve made a deal.¡± Ah? Now that made her really flinch. He knew? She had taken all the measures possible to keep their deal a secret, and she hadn¡¯t seen Dianthus since the incident. Who told him? How many people knew already? Most of her plans depended on the deal being kept a secr- Dianthus caressed his face slowly, as if he¡¯d really just woken up. But one signal didn¡¯t get lost on Velvet. He had slid his index finger upon his lips in a shushing motion. Just for an instant, only noticeable for someone who knew the signs. That¡¯s to say, her. Only he knows it. Velvet understood. As for how he found out¡­ she wasn¡¯t going to ask. Keeping a secret went in both directions, after all. Harlan excused himself, using the excuse of starting to set up stuff for the class to separate the couple. So Velvet went to sit next to Dianthus. She could allow herself to be prideful and ignore him, but that was an useless idea. ¡°I didn¡¯t know you had any interest in engraving. Is this what they call being a novelty seeker?¡± Being number one on the novice tier had too many benefits, really. One of them being free classes. ¡°Oh, I don¡¯t have any. I was taking a stroll when an old woman started saying that she had a great, interesting class I had to try. She then brought me here. Didn¡¯t know it was about engraving.¡± Velvet¡¯s smile twitched. ¡°Dianthus, did you get kidnapped?¡± He turned to look at her, and shrugged. ¡°It happens sometimes. Must be fate.¡± Chapter 109. Pipe bomb kettle Dianthus didn¡¯t recognize Velvet at first. Unless he used the spell to become unable to see the Escas true form, what he saw was always a monster, first and foremost. Two piles of ink-stained books and single pages with multiple eyes, that¡¯s how Velvet and Harlan looked to him. But it was the fact that both of them were knowledge mages that made the difference in their forms pop out more. One of the monsters had teeth growing on the side. Sharp, animal-like, as if a beast was biting the pages from inside-out. Even so, that wasn¡¯t the thing that caught his attention, nor was the blood mixed with the ink. No, the thing calling his attention the most was the eye, different from the knowledge Esca¡¯s eyes, with a red iris situated just under a small green light. A green light he harbored some disgust for. Lothrigern¡¯s beacon. Unfortunately for him, the instants he spent to look at all the things wrong with that monster were enough for Frenese to realize something was wrong, snitching to Velvet. Devils were too perceptive of any emotional fluctuation. Even when sealed, Frenese noticed how his heart skipped a beat. He might¡¯ve been wrong about the reason for Dianthus to stare, but the end result was the same. Velvet got alerted, and she now knew that he had some way to detect devil¡¯s deals. And giving knowledge to a knowledge mage was a problem. Especially if the knowledge mage in question was a bomb just waiting to be set off. Dianthus wanted nothing more than to sock Frenese at this moment. But first, he had to do damage control with Velvet, before she got the wrong idea. So he did the shushing motion. And it worked. Then, he spoke to his mind companion. ¡°That red eye, is it another mark?¡± ¡°Of course it is.¡± Forget socking Frenese, he was going to sock Velvet. ¡°Why does she keep pulling up the¡­ what did you call them?¡± ¡°Deriliam, Creators. Near omniscient, near omnipotent entities.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t they have anything better to do than to follow a human?¡± ¡°Do you really think they are keeping close watch on her? If they do that, she¡¯ll explode.¡± ¡°Then?¡± The voice didn¡¯t have time to answer him, since Velvet went next to him to talk. ¡°I didn¡¯t know you had any interest in engraving. Is this what they call being a novelty seeker?¡± Not the pot calling the kettle black. Even so, he answered honestly. ¡°Oh, I don¡¯t have any. I was taking a stroll when an old woman started saying that she had a great, interesting class I had to try. She then brought me here. Didn¡¯t know it was about engraving.¡± He didn¡¯t miss Velvet¡¯s reaction, the way she twisted her smile, showing a bit of sharp teeth. ¡°Dianthus, did you get kidnapped?¡± He almost snorted at that. It would be funny if Arhontissa allowed any mage from another continent to drag him anywhere. ¡°It happens sometimes. Must be fate.¡± He lied. He was always being monitored. The only exceptions were the Opening, because the Mergifari prohibited official mages from entering and the point of entrance was random, preventing someone like Igern getting forcefully teamed up with him, and the times when he went to the bathroom. Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. And he actually had to argue a lot to be allowed privacy there. Arhontissa wasn''t going to let him leave. The fact that the Chosen One was born on their side was a miracle. A miracle they wouldn''t lose no matter what. Right now, an Arhontissian official mage was present in the room, monitoring him. Dianthus didn''t see them, but he could hear their thoughts. If the official mage who brought him here tried something, his monitor would step up instantly. He had tried to get kidnapped sometimes, so he could guarantee how things would turn out. No one ever made it. A shame, really. ¡°Fate, huh.¡± Velvet said, lost in thought. So lost that Dianthus peeked at her thoughts. He didn¡¯t exactly respect privacy, stopping caring about that long ago. I wonder what my fate is¡­ of course, with Lothrigern in the middle, any guess is as good as nothing. Your fate is becoming a pipe bomb¡­ Dianthus wanted to answer. He also wanted to get more information, but he didn¡¯t want to get his supervisor''s attention on Velvet. That would endanger her. And he didn¡¯t know how Lothrigern would react to her being threatened. A part of him wanted to find out, just out of curiosity, but another, the reasonable part, stopped him. He had found out once, after all. If he wanted to get information from Velvet, he needed to do so in a way his monitor didn¡¯t suspect anything. He had the Frenese issue, and the second formation to discuss. If Frenese hadn¡¯t snitched like a sewer rat, he could ask Velvet how the issue with the devil¡¯s book was going, but, since he did, asking that was akin to a threat. Velvet didn¡¯t know there was an official mage in the room, and he wanted to keep it that way. If he warned her, his monitor might suspect that he was planning something with a Charlampian mage. ¡°So,¡± He started. ¡°What do you remember of the second formation? I¡¯ve been researching the culprit.¡± He didn¡¯t need to specify. Velvet and him weren¡¯t acquaintances, having only seen each other three or four times. Velvet turned to him slowly. ¡°Why? Are you bored?¡± Dianthus squinted. However, Velvet¡¯s thoughts didn¡¯t give him an answer. ¡°They erased all magic traces.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± Now she was being smug, which made Dianthus want to be more smug than her. ¡°Yes, you might not have the importance of being allowed to check the place, but I do.¡± ¡°And you didn¡¯t find anything? That¡¯s so lame!¡± She snickered. A human-demon hybrid baby¡­ That was one of the things Velvet¡¯s thoughts showed him. ¡°I know more than you.¡± ¡°I know who¡¯s the culprit. Without needing to see the formation, or using magic.¡± ¡°Now you¡¯re just empty bragging.¡± Dianthus said, just to regret it at the same instant. Because she knew, dammit. And teasing a knowledge mage about faking knowing something tended to make them talk. ¡°Sure?¡± Velvet grinned. ¡°Who would try to harm the biggest Idir family, who is currently in a fight for the throne?¡± ¡°Think about the end goal, not the consequences. To official mages, novice mages being killed is nothing to worry about. But most of the novice mages killed were children of Idir mage families.¡± She knew all of that from Kartal¡¯s files. Vina and the majority of her companions were descendants of important Idir mages. ¡°Idir is in a civil war of sorts, and who wins the most by worsening it?¡± Velvet fell silent after saying that. If Dianthus didn¡¯t catch the meaning, he was simply too naive. Luckily for him, he wasn¡¯t. And the other thing he wasn¡¯t was enamored to his continent. That¡¯s why Velvet¡¯s refusal to spell the answer worked with him. Who won the most after the incident? The answer was simple, Arhontissa. The Machia was coming to a close, and, for it to end, a deity must die. Mirel and Paraiso were impossible to approach, and so were their believers. That only left Arhontissa and Idir. It was no wonder that the Mergifari stopped investigating. They simply collected the debt, not interested in meddling in the deities'' affairs. Both Arhontissa and Idir were allied to the Mergifari, and they sent more novice mages than the ones lost. Cutting ties for what was a political issue wasn¡¯t in the Mergifari¡¯s interests. And war always made stronger mages. Chapter 110. Hollow sides Dianthus laid back once again on his chair. ¡°You didn¡¯t say who did it.¡± He finally counterattacked. Velvet had given him an ample selection of targets, but not the culprit¡¯s name. ¡°Because I like being alive.¡± She simply said. You¡¯re not very bright, are you? Was what she thought. Dianthus wouldn¡¯t deny that. Most of his deductions came from reading the culprit¡¯s own thoughts, which had no merit at all. And the culprit of the Frenese incident was avoiding him like the plague. ¡°But¡­¡± Velvet continued. ¡°I think there¡¯s more than one responsible. Maybe three.¡± Alright then, the culprits were avoiding him like the plague. ¡°The snitch, the trapmaker and the cleanup, am I wrong?¡± He said. ¡°Indeed.¡± The plan needed at least three mages to work. First, the snitch. Probably an Idirian traitor. The one who spoke about Frenese¡¯s Book and the formation that was about to be used. Someone close to the Tarius, close enough to obtain the information. Second, the trapmaker. Affiliated to the Mergifari, since they were the ones who set up the pocket dimension. The one who inscribed the hidden formation to release Frenese¡¯s seal. Third, the cleanup. A novice mage, affiliation unknown. Novice mages were the only ones allowed entry during the Opening. One would suspect an Arhontissian novice, but Dianthus lived with them, which made keeping secrets from him impossible. The one who recovered and erased the formation once Frenese got sealed. The cleanup didn¡¯t recover the book, and they also didn''t kill Velvet, who had fainted¡­ they probably were scared and nervous, rushing the job as much as possible. If I didn¡¯t see her everyday, I''d suspect Creftalia, just for the half-assed job. But, if I was the novice mage, knowing that official mages would show up minutes after the sealing, I would be shitting my pants too. So, the novice mage isn¡¯t necessary on Creftalia¡¯s level. Velvet''s refusal to investigate the matter made some sense, too. Unlike Dianthus, she wasn¡¯t backed by the Queen, and wasn¡¯t immortal. It wasn¡¯t that she didn¡¯t want to, but that she couldn¡¯t. Velvet had chosen to bid her time. Even if the trail went cold by the time she could do something, she put her own safety first. Not everyone could shove their nose up official mages business like Dianthus did, after all. And Dianthus didn¡¯t plan on involving her, anyway. Their meeting today was some coincidence, one that won¡¯t happen again. During their talk, which wasn¡¯t anything more than a brief exchange of words, more novice mages had entered, taking seats; until the last person, an old woman with a stern face entered. ¡°Paramus Traversa.¡± Dianthus said in a low voice to Velvet. ¡°The Traversa¡¯s matriarch.¡± The mage who Tristan wants to rob when the Pioneer arrives¡­ ¡°I see.¡± Who and why? Dianthus wanted to ask, but there was no way for him to do it without arousing suspicion. He was more interested in the Pioneer bit, since Permafrost was the biggest issue. Even bigger than the deities'' conflicts. He should check the Pioneer¡¯s arrival too. If what was inside was enough for an official mage to leave their pocket dimension unattended, it should be worth his time. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. Looking at the now completely filled class, he realized how many mages Paramus had brought. That was his first clue that something was wrong. Mages weren¡¯t altruistic creatures. If they knew something had high demand, then they would demand the highest price they could get. A class full because the entry fee was just buying at a shop was simply ridiculous. A revenge against Arhontissa? He tensed up, checking the minds of the novice mages to count. No, there¡¯s barely any Arhontissian mages here. Dianthus turned to glance at Velvet. She had also realized something, but was way calmer than him. Idir is trying to recover from the losses. Oh, I can get so many benefits from this¡­ Ah, but I don¡¯t want to tease them with Frenese¡¯s Book that much. It¡¯s mine now, after all. Not for sale! Ah, is that what¡¯s happening? He felt a bit dumb for panicking, even when there was no one to prove that. Well, there was his mind companion, but it didn¡¯t count. Paramus cleared her throat, and the room fell silent. The old lady had dark skin, with purple eyes, red long hair collected into an elegant bun and a leather, long white dress from where a myriad of golden trinkets hung. Dressing in white even when she¡¯s an artificer¡­ Of course, no dirt defeated magic, and he knew that, reason why he also dressed in white. He liked the smugness that came once a dirty, bloody battle ended with him looking pristine. Stopping thinking about himself, he continued; Paramus wore a golden monocle on her right eye, made by two rings which slowly turned counterclockwise. She walked to the center of the room, slowly. ¡°Welcome.¡± Dianthus felt her gaze on him for a moment, before she turned to look at the other novices. None of them feel interesting. Too bland, too naive. Not enough to hold His gaze¡­ But, a deal is a deal. His? The capitalization wasn¡¯t lost on Dianthus. ¡°Some of you came here for the engraving course, and I must say, that¡¯s great of you. There¡¯s not enough mages dedicated to engraving nowadays.¡± ¡°The others came here for engine work, the ways to mix machines and magic, or just curiosity.¡± ¡°No matter the reasons or the needs who brought you here, since I¡¯ll answer them all.¡± As per the Mergifari¡¯s deal. ¡°I¡¯ll teach you the way to deny the laws of nature.¡± The reason behind Idir''s overwhelming machinery. ¡°No money in this world can buy both this name and its ritual. But from now on, it¡¯ll be public knowledge.¡± Permafrost keeps growing, even in war. ¡°You should count yourselves fortunate. The times you¡¯ll live will be truly interesting.¡± Paramus took a little breath, made a little pause, before saying a name. ¡°Baetylus, the Hollow Earth''s Forge.¡± ¡­ A strange sensation ran through Dianthus, as he saw how a mark, similar to a melting hole, appeared on all the novice mages, including him. However, his mark quickly disappeared. ¡°What was that?¡± He quickly asked his mind companion. ¡°I stopped him from influencing you.¡± Dianthus instantly checked Paramus¡¯ thoughts. She planned on first saying the name, just to explain the ritual next. She was now waiting to see if someone truly got His attention. ¡°Don¡¯t they have to say the name to call Him out?¡± He asked. ¡°That¡¯s not true, and that grasshopper taught you that personally, if I remember.¡± By grasshopper, he meant Lothrigern. ¡°He looks more like a mantis to me¡­¡± ¡°I don¡¯t care about what bug He resembles, what matters is that Deriliam¡¯s true names are not like deities'' names. The idea that you need to say them out loud to get Their attention is a lie. The moment you know the Deriliam¡¯s name, They become aware of you.¡± Dianthus had to force himself to not turn towards Velvet. That would surely catch the attention of both Paramus and his monitor. Because if someone was catching gazes like a worm in a chicken¡¯s coop, only one name came to mind. ¡°How is she looking?¡± ¡°Just as you suspect. A third mark has grown.¡± Dianthus took a deep breath. Two was coincidence, three was a pattern. And that became a possibility. In tales, prophecies or whatever term could be used, there were always two sides. The Chosen One, destined to save the world. The hero in shining armor, beloved by the people. And the other side¡­ ¡°The Deriliams are crowding to watch a show.¡± The voice said. ¡°Waiting for the moment the Ruin Bringer appears.¡± Velvet was his enemy. The one he was born to kill. Chapter 111. Sword, do not eat. The Ruin Bringer. Now, for such a title, the exact type of ruin it was supposed to bring was unknown. The prophecy was incomplete, after all. But, even so, fate was set in stone. Like the law, Ignorantia iuris neminem excusat. That¡¯s to say, the ignorance of its contents didn¡¯t exempt anyone from its compliance. ¡°Now for the kind of ruin someone like her could bring¡­¡± Dianthus spoke to his mind. ¡°Clearly she¡¯s dissatisfied with the mage society, but to be able to change that, one needs too much power. Only the Mergifari¡¯s Director could pull something like that.¡± ¡°Looking at her now, she has neither the power nor the skills, so we would be speaking of a far away future. And future means change. We can¡¯t be sure her current motivations are maintained in the future.¡± He didn¡¯t exactly care if Velvet wanted to ruin the mage society. He was aware that it was fucked, and wouldn¡¯t mind if she went down to town on their asses. Of course, without mages, no one could stop Permafrost, so he should keep that in mind. But once again, Velvet¡¯s current motivations might not be Velvet¡¯s future motivations¡­ ¡°Ugh.¡± Dianthus¡¯ mind strained from overthinking. Now would be a great time to have a prophetic dream with the answers of what he should do, but alas. It was his choice. He could kill Velvet right this instant, it wouldn¡¯t even be that difficult. She was just next to him, and, as a knowledge mage, her physical defense was average. Even when she had consumed devil¡¯s blood recently, a hit at such close distance would kill her. He wasn¡¯t the strongest novice just because he was unkillable and didn¡¯t accumulate miasma, no. He also had a lot of raw power, and the confidence that went with it. If he were to act now, neither Paramus, Hasdrubal, or his monitor could stop him. And that in the case they were to even try. Because killing Velvet would have zero consequences for him. As an unaffiliated, unbacked, slightly infamous mage, the only consequence would be that the Queen would have to pay a fee to Ceres for his selected¡¯s death. Nothing else. Yes, there was the morality issue of murdering someone who hadn¡¯t done nothing in the present but would do so in the future. Not that Velvet was an innocent soul. She had blood on her hands, but, in Dianthus¡¯ humble but very important opinion (self-diagnosed), they had it coming. So, nothing could stop him but himself. And, to tell the truth, he didn¡¯t like the idea of doing it. No, scratch that. Fuck not liking it, he simply wasn¡¯t going to. If fate was so feeble that some Chosen One behaving stubbornly could change it, he would eat his sword, with handle and everything. But, as long as the choice was his, he wouldn¡¯t kill Velvet before knowing what Ruin she would bring. Not because of guilt, morality or the idea of being able to fix her, but because he didn¡¯t want to. He didn¡¯t want to do it, so he wouldn¡¯t. End of history. Dianthus sighed deeply, making more noise than necessary, which earned him a glare from Paramus. Oh, right. He had disconnected from the lesson a while ago, not paying any attention, but Paramus seemed to be explaining the ritual. A ritual which Velvet looked eager to try. After checking Paramus¡¯ thoughts once again, he obtained the real reason to share the ritual. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Her plan was making a bunch of mages learn the name and ritual to channel Baethylus, so as to make His gaze move more towards this world. By having the Father of Craftsmanship looking here, some mages could obtain inspiration faster, making more weapons. Keyword some. A Deriliam¡¯s gaze wasn¡¯t like a deity¡¯s, having some consequences for the unlucky novice mages who were unable to hold it. Corruption, madness, loss of reasoning were prime examples. Of course, it could also be a movement of desperation, to progress faster on the Permafrost incursion. Not all plans had just one finality, after all. Novice mages were pretty much in the unknown about the official mage''s interest on Permafrost, but Dianthus, a mind reader and Chosen One, had a lot of information. But Paramus¡¯ plan was doomed to fail. First, Baethylus'' mark on Dianthus got erased by his companion, so he, the most stable anchor, was an anchor no more. Second, Velvet ended up hoarding the Deriliam''s attention, which was evident due to her mark being more nitid than the others. That meant that the other most stable anchor was going on its own. And third, like Lothrigern, Baetylus wasn¡¯t exactly safe to deal with. Probably. He wasn¡¯t exactly sure. But, there was no reason for the other novice mages to be the ones finding out. They only had one life, after all. And official mages playing with the novices'' lives bothered him a little bit. So, he did what he knew best: annoy people. ¡°Your class is boring me.¡± Dianthus got up from the chair, stretching and yawning in an attention seeker manner. Paramus fixed her monocle¡¯s position, clearly annoyed at a novice mage interrupting her. No other novice mage would be insane, or stupid enough to speak that way to an official mage. But he was. ¡°You told me that you¡¯ll show me the best way to engrave my sword, and now you tell me I have to call someone else. What use do I have for you then?¡± Paramus raised her chin slightly, clearly having an answer for that question. ¡°The visions are confusing and hard to understand. Without the pertaining knowledge, understanding the procedures is-¡± ¡°Don¡¯t talk too highly of yourself.¡± He interrupted, again. ¡°I doubt the visions of one of them are confusing. You simply can''t replicate them properly, so you just dumb them down to your level.¡± He continued, this time, motioning to the surrounding mages. "Oh, but for all of you, that¡¯s normal. Unlike me, it''s not like you can accomplish anything worthwhile, so having others giving you the solutions must feel great." Now it wasn¡¯t only Paramus who was getting increasingly pissed off, since everyone disliked that. Well, honestly, combat mages disliked that, while support mages were already used to similar comments. They already knew their role usually ended up being an afterthought, and that they would never be the most flashy of mages. But combat mages were competitive, taking the comment in strife. Any moment now¡­ Upon sensing an hostile thought, Dianthus moved his hand. Clash! A triangular gold pillar got summoned next to him, instants before a metallic, multi-layered gear clashed against him, sending sparkles of scorching metal flying off. Huh, he hadn¡¯t expected the attacker to be a knowledge mage, not after mentioning how assuming they were of their unimportance. Checking his mind without even looking towards him, he found the culprit. It was the guy who had entered with Velvet. Dianthus didn''t care about his name, so that was the description he offered. Spinning in place, the gear tried to break the pillar, not making any progress. If I move the pillar, the gear''s rebound might cut someone in half... Oh well, he attacked me first. With a wave, the triangular pillar spinned in place, the gear losing its opposition and crazily rushing towards a table. With a snap of fingers, Paramus stopped the gear on its tracks, taking its control away from Harlan in an instant. Even so, the remnant kinetic energy didn''t disappear, the air wave crashing against the novices on that side, breaking tables and chairs, knocking them away. Dianthus was gonna give it to them, though. Two mages did have the inertia to put up a shield. That protected only them. Oh, the selfishness. He turned his head, making sure to put his most infuriating, smug smile. "Is this gear a dumbed down Baethylus invention? No wonder I can intercept it, since you''re unable to modify it." ¡°You-¡± The gear guy wanted to shout something at him, but he noticed how Paramus had glared at him for the loose gear, shutting up. "Unlike me, none of you really matter, so, if you want to cut your lives short playing with that Baethylus guy, so be it. But, that''s a coward''s choice." Dianthus grinned, an idea forming in his mind. "Why don''t you call his brother? He is known for coming in person, not needing to send visions!" "Go and call for Lothrigern, I''m sure he''ll love it. " The angry expression from the mages changed suddenly. Even when he wasn''t sure of the Deriliam''s blood ties, calling them brothers was on purpose. Lothrigern was very infamous in the mage world, so putting Baethylus as ''related'' to Him was a devastating blow to His approachability. It was also a tiny detail that Paramus ¡®skipped¡¯, so Dianthus saying it hurted all credibility. Aside from Velvet, no novice mage would ruin their life now, Dianthus concluded, checking their minds. As per his reputation? Who cared! Chapter 112. Different methods, same result Ignoring Dianthus¡¯ outburst, Velvet observed Paramus¡¯ and Harlan¡¯s reactions, much more interested in the Traversa family. She had to steal from them, so having the chance of knowing how they acted beforehand was truly a gift. As per Baetylus¡¯ name¡­ it was a future her problem. Present her was busy taking notes. First, Harlan¡¯s big gear. It wasn¡¯t an artifact made for a knowledge mage, reason why Paramus hijacked its control so easily. Like Dianthus did to her vines, stronger mages could take ownership from spells differing from the attacking mage¡¯s Paradigm. That¡¯s why mages preferred to center their efforts on bettering their own Paradigm abilities, which didn¡¯t lose power like abilities from other Paradigms, and couldn¡¯t be hijacked. But Velvet, remembrance and knowledge mages worked differently. If they managed to know their enemies'' Paradigms, they could simply use spells differing from the enemies¡¯ Paradigms. Knowledge was their forte, after all. Now, a knowledge mage could use spells from other Paradigms, but they weren¡¯t supposed to act like other Paradigms. That¡¯s why knowledge was formed by apathy and greed. Apathy was an important part of knowledge, and Velvet had discovered something about Harlan. He was closer to the Greed part than the Apathy part. He snapped when Dianthus said that they couldn¡¯t accomplish anything. And before, he had gotten extremely disappointed when Velvet didn¡¯t complain about his work, not giving him a chance to prove his knowledge. Harlan was greedy. Greedy for acknowledgement. Paradigms were fixed, and couldn¡¯t be changed. If a mage got a Paradigm just to discover they didn¡¯t enjoy it, then it sucked to be them, but the choice was final. If someone became a knowledge mage, then they were the result of apathy and greed. Not just greed. Trying to behave like someone from a different Paradigm was a trip to madness. Miasma would accumulate faster, the magic would be weaker, and the mage would be quicker to lose control. That being said, Velvet thought, knowing that gives some hints about the Traversa¡¯s behaviors. Harlan is not an unbacked mage, so there¡¯s official mages behind him who should keep him in check. For them to not be doing so, I have two guesses. One, they don''t care. If a novice mage is stupid enough to ignore their Paradigm¡¯s rules, they deserve to lose control. And two, very high competition. Harlan¡¯s problems seem to be born from wanting to prove himself to others, so maybe the Traversa have a novice ranking like the Mergifari. And the higher you are, the more attention you receive. That affected Velvet¡¯s incursion plan. Her previous expectations were that if she entered and encountered a novice mage, they might fight for a bit, before they ran to get help. But now, she kinda expected that any novice mage she found there would fight her until one of them truly went down. She expected that Tristan would give her concealment artifacts to keep her identity hidden, but the problem was the spells she had. If she used her normal set of spells, even if she wore the best concealing artifact, her identity would be revealed. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. Not only that. If she used spells from too many different Paradigms, the fact that the intruder was a knowledge mage would also be revealed. So she needed to pick one Paradigm and stick to it. It doesn¡¯t need to be a Paradigm, but that depends on Him listening to me. Velvet mused, the plan taking shape on her mind. But if He does¡­ yes, that might be what I need. She needed to buy some more things. Blinking slowly, Velvet extended her hand, touching the pillar Dianthus had summoned. It¡¯s warm to the touch, and there are some runes written, similar to the ones in Igern¡¯s weapons. Arhontissa¡¯s magic authority, perhaps? She slid her finger a bit, but the pillar disappeared. Looking up, her eyes met Dianthus¡¯, who glanced at her, clearly having canceled the spell. There was no need to be so stingy. I already memorized the runes, jackass. Smiling back at him innocently, Velvet looked to the mass of tables, materials and chairs conglomerated on the other side. Dianthus knocked the gear in the direction opposite of her, so she ended up safe. The other mages, on the other hand¡­ ¡°Why did you throw it here, you imbecile?!¡± A mage, who was climbing from under the debris screamed at him. ¡°You should have stopped it instead of playing with it like a fucking yo-yo!¡± ¡°Yo-yos are supposed to come back to the hand, I think you mean a spinning top.¡± Velvet corrected, not helping the situation at all. ¡°Aren¡¯t the ones who come back boomerangs?¡± Dianthus asked, deliberately ignoring the fuming novice mage, sitting down again next to her. ¡°Different methods, but same result.¡± She said, smiling. Dianthus extended one arm behind her back, without touching her. A table crossed half the room instantly, crashing against the shield he summoned, ending reduced to smithereens. None of the splinters touched them, crossing to the other side. Wrath mages¡­ Velvet sighed to herself, but neither she nor Dianthus turned to pay attention to the raging mage. Only for him to get angrier. ¡°Enough.¡± Paramus said, touching her monocle. The moment she did, the whole room spinned, tables, chairs and mages going back as they were moments before, unbroken and unmoved. As if nothing had happened minutes ago, she continued. ¡°Since the explanation for the ritual got interrupted, I will explain the traditional ways to engrave artifacts.¡± Paramus stared at Dianthus. ¡°There should be no problem with that, right?¡± ¡°None whatsoever.¡± He said. ¡­ Once the class was over, everyone parted ways, including Velvet. Well, not everyone. Harlan and Paramus stood behind, but she didn¡¯t want to be present for that conversation. She did want to, actually, but there was no way for her to do so without getting caught. So, instead, she went to buy more materials. The night was going to be long, and she was going to need them. ¡­ When she finished, it was dawn. She had spent 10000 auris more on materials. Some she did need, and some she didn¡¯t, just to confuse anyone watching her. I¡¯m really becoming a moving workshop¡­ Ah, whatever. Time to keep working. She thought, going to the end of the Mergifari¡¯s safe forest. She had someone to find. It didn¡¯t take her too much time. Yes, she had gone as far away from Velvet¡¯s hut as possible to work, but, since her work was the same, her location didn¡¯t change much. Nebura was in front of the magic wall, tinkering with the box. Slowly, the feeling of being watched crept over her neck, making her look to the trees behind. It wasn¡¯t night yet, but the forest was cloaked in shadows, and the cold mist was sweeping in. Her eyes met a figure half hidden by the darkness, making her jump, almost dropping the box. ¡°Velvet!¡± Not the damn girl again, she cursed. ¡°Hello!¡± She waved at Nebura, like friends who hadn¡¯t seen each other in days. Which they clearly weren¡¯t. ¡°Are you trying to steal the replicator again? The last time you got me by surprise, but now-¡± Nebura took a combat posture. She wasn¡¯t planning on surrendering. ¡°Ah, no, don¡¯t worry. I don¡¯t want the box anymore.¡± Even when it would be a nice way of getting profits. A perpetual motion machine of money¡­ Nebura clicked her tongue, not trusting Velvet one bit. ¡°Then why are you here?¡± ¡°I live here.¡± She said, widening her eyes slightly, using a ¡®Isn¡¯t that obvious¡¯ tone. ¡°Stop playing dumb.¡± Both of them knew that this place was far away from Velvet¡¯s home, so she clearly, obviously had gone after her on purpose. ¡°Ah, well, the truth is¡­¡± Velvet touched her face, a slight blush growing on it. For anyone who knew her, a very fake blush. ¡°I know you¡¯re planning to team up against me~¡± She proceeded to cover her blush with her hands, like a delicate miss. ¡°Ah! So much attention is embarrassing, you know!¡± Nebura¡¯s eyebrows twitched, annoyed with Velvet¡¯s antics. Even so, she changed her posture, to one much more wary. ¡°I¡¯m a shy lady, and I cannot take you all at once, so¡­¡± Spreading her fingers to look at Nebura, she finally said. ¡°I¡¯m going to take you down one by one, again and again.¡± ¡°If half of you are constantly in the hospital, you can''t team up.¡± Chapter 113. A bait made of bad memories Nebura took a step back. She now knew that Velvet had consumed devil¡¯s blood, becoming more powerful than usual. But that¡¯s where her advantages ended. Nebura wasn¡¯t only a more combat focused mage, she also had much more years than Velvet to learn and use magic. And it was time for her to put that brat into place. She had gotten in her way too many times. ¡°Stay!¡± Nebura started with an Order, but Velvet was ready for it, using the Sound Blocking charms. At the next instant, she summoned her mercury whips, slashing in her direction in a spread manner, blocking any attempt to escape. Chunks of trees fell down, together with branches, dirt and rocks, the forest¡¯s calm ruined. Velvet dashed to the side, hiding behind a thick tree. Got you. Nebura tensed, twisting her wrist and pulling the air. Instantly, all the spread mercury lashes changed direction, their power increasing, chopping all the trees in their path, coiling around Velvet. With a spiraling slash, the tree where Velvet was hiding got reduced to splinters in a second. Clink. The silvery threads got stopped, three golden vertical pillars protecting Velvet. Nebura recognized the spell, it was Dianthus¡¯. With a flicker of Velvet¡¯s hand, the pillars started spinning, their triangular edges destroying the mercury whips, scattering them into liquid droplets in all directions. Nebura extended her palms, the droplets stopping in the air, before joining her hands, making the droplets shoot towards Velvet like silver bullets. Velvet threw a paper figurine up in the air with one hand, while the other pulled out Syon¡¯s umbrella. An icicle rain fell down, colliding against the bullets, stopping most than half of them, while the surviving ones clashed against the umbrella. A sense of pride enveloped Nebura. As long as she kept the offensive up, she, who was under Arhontissa, would produce less miasma than Velvet, lasting more than her and winning by attrition. Just have to keep her from counterattacking. Easy. Not waiting for the dust and ice particles to settle, Nebura mobilized her mercury once again. She was going to crush Velvet. No need to congratulate herself until she went completely down. Nebura started combining the mercury particles. They being so small reduced her power by a lot, but putting them back together just took a second. A second that the wind used to partially clear the dust in the air, revealing Velvet¡¯s silhouette. A second which she used to put the open umbrella on her shoulder, wink at Nebura and snap her fingers in a tryhard cute posture. Nebura wasn¡¯t a lip reader, but she understood Velvet¡¯s words clearly. ¡°Boom.¡± ¡°Wha-¡± Unable to react in time, a strong explosion came from below Nebura, throwing her to the ground. Mages had some innate resistance to magic attacks, so, unlike an explosion made with gunpowder, it didn¡¯t straight up blow her into pieces. Even so, a close, direct and strong surprise attack like that was enough to damage her greatly, cutting the control with her mercury. Raising her head to cough, the nitid sound of steps approaching her made her grimace. Forest floor didn¡¯t sound like that, so Velvet was spending magic just to strengthen the stepping noise. Once she was right in front of her, Velvet bent forward, twirling the umbrella and looking down at her. ¡°Next time, look at your feet.¡± Something skittered on the floor, climbing Velvet¡¯s body, until it hid on her hat. It was a spider. Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Now everything clicked for Nebura. Why Velvet had waited for her to notice her presence, instead of making a surprise attack. Why she had threatened her, instead of keeping her cards close to her chest. It wasn¡¯t like Velvet needed a reason to clown, but, unfortunately for Nebura, this time she clowned for a reason. The reason being obtaining knowledge about her fighting style and spells, which wouldn¡¯t be possible under a successful surprise attack. For that, Velvet hadn¡¯t played the attacker, but the bait. And, Nebura realized too late, watching Velvet raise her foot. This bait had caught the fish. ¡­ ¡°That felt a bit too personal.¡± Hyde said, as Velvet was going back to her hut, strolling through the forest. ¡°Because it was.¡± She nonchalantly answered. Unfortunately for her, Nebura was somehow ready for her attack, not bringing any artifact or container, leaving her without any spoil. ¡°She is Madam Dorna¡¯s niece, after all.¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t that make her your big stepsister?¡± Hyde said, in a joking manner, safely protected from harm since he was inside his pocket dimension. ¡°No. She left Casrey right after the accident, so we never had a chance to live together. I only knew her from when my parents were still alive.¡± She barely knew Nebura. But she knew her grandma. Hell, she¡¯d been raised by her. ¡°But Madam Dorna¡­¡± She sighed. ¡°She kept having faith about her return. Year after year. But alas.¡± She made a pause, her thoughts going back to the letter she sent. ¡°What was I supposed to say? Mages didn¡¯t take your niece. She simply didn¡¯t feel you were worth it.¡± Velvet didn¡¯t use those exact words in her letter to Madam Dorna, but only an idiot wouldn¡¯t understand the meaning behind the mellowed words. ¡°Your wait was for nothing. She needs you no more.¡± ¡°All the time you spent hating mages and magic was meaningless. No one forced her hand. No one killed her. It was her own decision.¡± ¡°There is nothing to avenge. Hell, you talked about how my chase for the Chained Man was futile, but at least I have a target. You have no one to blame.¡± She wouldn¡¯t care if Nebura was someone else¡¯s niece, but she was Madam Dorna¡¯s, and Velvet knew how much she had waited, waited and waited. Now, Velvet didn¡¯t exactly hate Nebura. But she harbored no desires of making her life easier. She was aware that it was pure selfishness from her side. But she didn¡¯t care. But nevermind her personal relations. There were worse things to worry about, starting by analyzing her fight. Even if she had won, Velvet wasn''t going to jest. She won because of her trap working, not because she was stronger than Nebura. She had been sent into defensive the whole battle, without a chance of counterattacking. And in those battles, the one who lasted longer won. Arhontissa''s blessing was no joke. Nebura accumulated miasma way slower than her, and she wasn''t completely blessed like Dianthus, Igern or Doireann were. But she was already aware of that, and had some plan to combat it. To obtain magic, there were two ways, previously explained: Obtaining an Esca after opening a gate to the Primeval Sea, which produced enchantresses. Velvet was one of these, like Gertine, Tristan, the Mergifari¡¯s Director¡­ And being blessed by a deity, becoming sorcerers. Like Skogul, the Queen of Arhontissa, Syon¡­ Both categories were considered mages, the only difference being the way of becoming one. But, pertaining to one group didn¡¯t forbid the mage from joining the other. Of course, the only way was being first an enchanter and then a sorcerer. If a mage blessed by a deity touched the Primeval Sea, they would die instantly, consumed by the miasma. That¡¯s why someone like Skogul had to remain just a death follower forever. He became a mage after dying, which now cut him from obtaining an Esca. But mages like Igern and Nebura were both. Igern was from the Tyranny Paradigm, and also used runes pertaining to Arhontissa. Nebura didn¡¯t use runes, but had the miasma accumulation slowed. She wasn¡¯t sure about Dianthus¡¯ category, but he probably was an exception anyway. Even so, he used runes too, which put him at least in the sorcerer¡¯s group. But, Velvet was an enchantress first and foremost. And she had no desire to restrict herself to a group. Power was power, no matter who gave it to her. She didn''t want to try and get blessed by a planetary deity, since she only knew Arhontissa and Idir, and didn''t fancy any of them. But, before the Opening, she had made a deal with Skugol. A trade consisting of a wraith for a name. A conceptual deity''s name. Chapter 114. Run, run, you are a turtle and the hare doesnt rest Once back in her hut, Velvet started clearing the living room, making space for setting up the altar. She didn¡¯t bother to call Udulluay this time, not trusting the devil bird. Of course, she wasn¡¯t going to do the ritual for the goddess here. The point of obtaining her blessing was that no one else should know about it. Not even Udulluay. And I should try to avoid Dianthus, at least until I figure out how he discovered my deal with Frenese. She thought, setting the bells in a circle. Even when they didn¡¯t have a bad relationship, she didn¡¯t trust him that much. And, even when she also didn¡¯t trust Lothrigern, she at least felt that the Deriliam had the same end goal as her. In part. But she didn¡¯t even feel that with Dianthus. The guy always felt like he was waiting for something bad to happen. Like the spectator of a show he was part in, knowing the play and participating when he felt like it. That¡¯s why ¡®trusting¡¯ Lothrigern¡¯s fairies was her current plan. Just, not completely. Like the previous times, Velvet stood outside the bell circle, starting to apply some magic to the bells, who answered with a jingle. ¡°From the center¡­ to between.¡± ¡°From the earthbound¡­to the fae that travels unbounded.¡± ¡°I¡¯m Velvet Consestella Dobastro, and I call for a helpful and pleasant, non-Lothrigern faerie that can take me to an uninhabited place in this world, where no one related to mages is there but me, where it''s safe for normal humans to reside and that can¡¯t be located by any spell.¡± She needed a place truly hidden from someone like Hasdrubal. She knew that Hasdrubal was searching for the reason behind her chains, and she wasn¡¯t still at the level where she could shake him off with no effort. But, as long as she made this jump fast, the knowledge mage wouldn¡¯t have time to find her. As the bells rang, a soft melody echoed in the room, a ripple crossing the air in the middle of the altar, as a silhouette seamlessly appeared. The fairy was tall and slender, golden hair falling straight down their back, with some strands of hair tangled on their horns, resembling those of a deer. As clothes were, the fairy wore only a white, peerless tunic, the material probably silk, with a loose collar (the whole tunic was a bit big for the fairy, even when they were tall), which reached their ankles. If the antlers were something to go, Velvet would assume that it was a male fairy, since all anthropomorphic fairies were either feminine or pretty androgynous, with an innocent and elegant surface appearance. The rest were animals, like the bear she first met, or insectoids, like the pixie. Like Lothrigern, all the fairies who resembled humans had a delicate and ethereal appearance, but with a pretty bad attitude if one were to cross them. If one wanted to see a muscular fairy, the closest one would be a bear. And not the gay kind. For those one should go to Baethylus creations, who were more muscular. Velvet kind of made up the last point, since she wasn¡¯t sure what beings were created by Baethylus, but, as a Deriliam compared to a blacksmith, His creations were probably buff. If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Back to the fairy, it wasn¡¯t like Velvet cared for their gender, but, if she wanted to consistently work with them, she needed to learn the differences between them. That¡¯s why, while she was shopping before, she had bought several books about fae, and gone through them already. With her new knowledge, she kinda expected the fae in front of her to be an Aes s¨ªdhe, a fairy in the ¡®good¡¯ category. Good as in ¡®do not test their patience¡¯, but won¡¯t try to backstab her for the fun of it. The other fairies she had seen, without mentioning the pixie, were probably a kelpie and a fenodyree, with the ¡®damped woman¡¯ being a kelpie, and the bear a fenodyree respectively. Kelpies were the kind of fairy that drowned and ate humans, and if Velvet had accepted the woman¡¯s attractive ¡®offer¡¯, she probably would¡¯ve been dead by now. Even when one asked for a type of fairy, that was mostly a suggestion, and a mage could get any kind, but fairies had their own set of rules, namely, being a perfect guest while there was a perfect host. So, even if Velvet ended up calling a dangerous fairy, as long as she remained a good host, the faerie wouldn¡¯t act like a nuisance. They could play some tricks, but nothing too extreme. In addition to that, one should keep a close eye on what they did and say to faeries, because they took things way too literal. The most known action was saying ¡®Thanks¡¯ or something similar, because they assumed that the person was grateful to them, and thus, owed them something. No one wanted to owe anything to a fae. But asides from that, doing something like bowing to them or a curtsy was also dangerous, since it changed the ¡®equal¡¯ position of host and guest that was in action, making the other party below them. And fairies made for awful bosses. ¡°I need to go to a place in this world safe for humans but unininhabited.¡± Velvet recalled the petition to the fae. ¡°Can you take me there?¡± She made emphasis on the ¡®In this world¡¯ part, because making a faerie take you to the Fae Realm was very, very easy. And it wasn¡¯t like that was a problem for her right now, but time on the Fae Realm went slower than time on the Material Ream, with a big difference. One day there was a year here. And that would give enough time to Hasdrubal to locate her position on the Fae Realm. The fairy smiled at her before nodding slightly and extending his hand. ¡°Of course.¡± Velvet took it, before both their figures disappeared. She didn¡¯t know what to expect from fae teleportation. Maybe dizziness or motion sickness. Instead, it kind of felt like crossing a door to the outside, with the temperature change and the loss of the fireplace warmth. Velvet blinked slowly, taking in the new location. A prairie, with short green grass covering all around her, until reaching a precipice. By the slight frost on the leaves, and the mountains surrounding her, she assumed her location was in Mirel. ¡°Oh.¡± Velvet suddenly said, looking at the fairy next to her. ¡°Right, I forgot a warm glass of milk in my house. It will go cold soon, so feel free to help yourself to it if you want to.¡± There, the ¡®gift¡¯ was complete. The fairy nodded at her, before disappearing. Not wasting a moment, Velvet quickly set up a second fairy altar, using a second set of bells. Once again, she started chanting. ¡°From the center¡­ to between.¡± ¡°From the earthbound¡­to the fae that travels unbounded.¡± ¡°I¡¯m Velvet Consestella Dobastro, and I call for a helpful and pleasant, Lothrigern faerie that can take me to the best place in this world where I can fulfill the ritual to obtain the blessing of the Goddess of Darkness without being interrupted, followed or captured.¡± The file Dianthus gave her with her information didn¡¯t say that she could call Lothrigern without getting cursed, so it didn¡¯t do her any favor to use the name on her home, where whoever was monitoring her could discover it. That¡¯s why she first used a non-Lothrigern faerie, and now she used a Lothrigern one. Even so, she didn''t know what to expect. A pixie like the other time, perh- She felt a slight push, before getting instantly teleported. Unlike the previous time, this time caught her totally by surprise, less like crossing an umbral and more like getting pushed off a cliff. A very tall cliff, Velvet realized, as she kept falling down nonstop. ¡­ No one remained at the prairie for a few seconds, before a ripple grew in the air, a figure coming out. It was a young girl, around Velvet¡¯s age. Long purple hair fell straight down her back, with a lackluster shine. Her clothes were white, affixed to her body by leather belts. Long sleeves that reached the floor, covering her hands completely, closed by belts too, which made her arms look like two full bags. Her eyes were big, with round pupils who didn¡¯t reflect light. Instead, if one looked closely inside her eyes, one would see a room, where an old man with a long beard was. ¡°Ah¡­ She left so soon. So hurried¡­¡± The girl moved her arms and legs, trembling, as if she was laughing in silence. Even so, her big eyes remained completely still, not even blinking, looking at the altar remains. ¡°And I was so so close to getting you, Velvet¡­¡± She said, extending the sacs she had for arms forward, her gaze fixed on the altar. Then, she joined the sacs, as if she had clapped. In a blink, the zone where the altar was was destroyed to smithereens, a crater in its place. Nothing remained, not even debris. The girl shook her now inflated sleeves, making a clinking sound. The belts holding the bags shut opened slightly, and a set of crumpled bells fell down, together with a few loose, bloody teeth. Some of that same blood ran down the corners of her mouth, which she opened, several teeth now missing, the holes where the teeth should be making a strange noise. As if something had wormed its way inside. Slowly, the noise went quieter, until it stopped completely; in a moment, the girl raised a covered hand to her mouth, inserting some fake teeth into the empty places. Looking at the half bitten bells, she spoke, her eyes unchanging. ¡°Those tasted so disgusting, I¡¯m gonna have indigestion¡­¡± Chapter 115. Third altar, cradle of fears Gravity was a bitch. Surprise gravity was even more of a bitch. And, falling nonstop where the only thing she saw at the bottom was water, water and more water, made her want to call Lothrigern a bitch too. She didn¡¯t do it, but she wanted to do so oh so badly. Well, not everything was water, the Deriliam didn¡¯t simply toss her to the middle of the ocean, no. There was an island just below her. Way below her. Which gave her enough time to use a spell to slow down her fall and take out her broom, flying towards the island instead of crashing against it like a meteor. She had never flown at such high altitude, with the wind opposing her with such strength, tossing her around the air. So, instead of fighting the wind currents, she followed them, approaching the island in a roundabout way, making an ample circle. The island was big, moving across the sea, pushed by the waves. Wandering islands were usually monsters, who tried to trick pirates and sailors to disembark on them. Like when she was traveling towards the Mergifari at first, the sea route got canceled because of a Lyngbakr appearing, who was one of those monsters. That was one of the reasons she didn¡¯t instantly disembark on the island, circling it instead. Now, she didn¡¯t feel the ¡®pull¡¯ of the Lyngbakr¡¯s abilities, the desire of stepping in it, but that one wasn¡¯t the only existing wandering island monster, which made her maintain her caution. The island looked tropical, with two small mountains in the middle, like a spine. It also had a convex form, like a turtle¡¯s shell. Yeah, from above, it looked like a turtle. She didn¡¯t see the extremities, but those were probably underwater or hidden. Velvet approached carefully, checking the vegetation. There wasn¡¯t any algae, so the monster should¡¯ve remained on the surface for a long time. Or simply wasn''t one of the island monsters who sinked. That simply meant it hunted in another way. Monsters needed to eat, after all. But, Velvet was just a human, with low worth as a colossus¡¯ snack, so maybe, maybe the monster didn¡¯t feel the need to try to hunt her. One wave lifted the island slightly, enough for her to catch a glimpse of something. A giant turtle head. The bones, at least. The island was indeed a monster. A long dead one, drifting on the sea waiting to collide against some shore somewhere. That¡¯s how ghost islands were born. And that was a fact Velvet just made up. You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. She instantly started thinking about the bones as material. They were probably expensive, but, for getting them, she should dive into the sea under the island, while she didn¡¯t know what killed the monster. If it was some parasite or bacteria, entering those waters without protection would be suicide. And, if it wasn¡¯t, there were plenty of monsters who could make home inside the monster¡¯s corpse. In the end, she went to focus on the ritual, finally flying into the island. Maybe she would come back for materials later. After surveilling the whole island, taking note of how its terrain was distributed, she went to a small clearing, with enough space for setting another altar. At least this time it isn¡¯t a fae one¡­ ¡­ Once Velvet checked the clearing surroundings, setting up some formations with Hyde¡¯s help so as to not be ambushed by any wild monster, she started putting down the ritual materials. When she had made the first fairy altar, there was still some light in the day, but now it was night already, her only illumination coming from an oil lamp she had put in the middle as she worked, the moon and the stars. The moon was almost full. That wasn¡¯t a problem for the ritual, since the conceptual goddess called was the darkness one, not the moon one. What was important was the altar, the chant and the test. The altar contained three hundred black candles that she had merged into three wax pillars in front of her, by warming them and sticking them to each other. The result being lumpy pillars almost as tall as her, with some candles sticking out of the mass. She had to light them on, after all. No use hiding all the wicks under the wax. The whole pillar making took her a good hour, but it wasn¡¯t something she could¡¯ve ¡®brought done from home¡¯. Heh, it almost reminds me of the times when I sneaked from the orphanage at night to test magic and do rituals. She joked to herself while working. Like the demon summoning one. Once the pillars were done, she started putting some stray candles around the floor, not following any kind of formation or direction. ¡°That one is a fire hazard.¡± Hyde said. ¡°Move it to the left.¡± They (well, she) had kind of cleared the zone, but some leaves still moved with the wind, coming close to the unlit candles. Since she didn¡¯t plan on burning the island down, even more while she was in it, Velvet kicked them away, in addition to throwing some soil around. ¡°Alright, altar base done.¡± She said, now putting some incense bars on the clearing edge¡¯s. The incenses were either jasmine or primrose, and she lighted them before setting them down, letting their fragrant smell start to spread over the clearing. Velvet waited until the smoke surpassed the trees. Once it did, she went to the middle of the altar, in front of the three pillars. She didn¡¯t kneel, for the ritual had no need of it. Instead, she stood straight, taking a long, deep breath. With a snap of her fingers, all the candles lit on at the same time, with a thin, long flame, illuminating the night. She had decided to not surrender against anyone, no matter what she had to do. She had chosen her path, and now only remained for her to walk in it. Velvet extended her hand, materializing Frenese¡¯s Book. The book remained closed, chained and floating in the air. Leaving it like that, she started chanting. ¡°Mother of Horrors, Cradle of Fears.¡± ¡°You who were before the light, and once everything ends, will remain.¡± ¡°No sound will be heard in your presence, no one will be seen besides you.¡± ¡°Goddess of the Dark, the first and the last.¡± ¡°I am pleading to you, may your presence be known.¡± ¡°May I challenge fear, may I be blessed by you.¡± Silence followed, with nothing aside from the flickering of the candles making noise. Then, the candles started changing color, from orange, to blue, to black, losing their capabilities of expelling light, but not stopping their act of melting the candles. Velvet¡¯s surroundings fell into the darkness, with only the light of the stars as guide. She looked up, as a star disappeared from the sky with a blink, followed by another, and another. Slowly, the whole night sky got engulfed in darkness. Like blowing an array of candles. Light by light, Velvet¡¯s surroundings were being progressively swallowed by the darkness. Only the almost full moon remained, looking down at her. Then, it blinked, changing from white to red. And then it started boiling, like blood on a cauldron. Like tears, a black liquid dripped from the moon, falling on the island, ignoring any sort of astrological or physical logic. Even when Velvet wasn¡¯t next to any of the falling tears, she still heard them crawl. The trial of darkness had started. Now, on what consisted the trial for completing the ritual and obtaining the blessing of the Goddess of Darkness? On surviving until the morning comes. Chapter 116. Wax-like counterfeits Unlike the trial from the Goddess of Death, which required the person to die, the one from the Goddess of Darkness was less¡­ eternally changing. Of course, she still had to resist until morning, while challenging the Fears. The Fears that came with the ritual were random, and depended on the person who made the ritual. It could be a single one or several, but Velvet saw three black tears fall from the moon. Since the Fears were personalized in a way, they didn¡¯t have a singular name. But, watching the grotesque silhouettes, who some might call human-like, with their skin and meat dripping down like the candle wax next to her, getting closer, Velvet had a name in mind. The Fear of Melting. Now, even when the Fear had based itself on the Casrey¡¯s accident, Velvet really wasn¡¯t afraid of the melting thing. Even from before she obtained an Esca with a Paradigm adjacent to Apathy, her memories of that incident always surrounded the man on top of the mountain; that¡¯s to say, the Chained Man, instead of the victims. That didn¡¯t mean she didn¡¯t remember them, because she certainly did. And, deep in the island, she could even hear the calling voice. Now, it had been years since she was forced to remember that scene, and hear that voice, so she wasn¡¯t sure if the Fears were peeking at her deepest memories to shape themselves or if that choice was a way to mess with her. She didn¡¯t have a perfect memory until gaining an Esca, so what happened before obtaining it wasn¡¯t recorded in her brain. That was why she couldn¡¯t be a hundred percent sure of the authenticity of the Calling Voice, or, more specifically, of its owner. Was there even a Calling Voice? Or was it just the cacophony of the voices of its own victims? Even so, the fact that she, a knowledge mage, didn¡¯t remember how the real Calling Voice sounded, bothered her a bit. Because the Fears were making it sound exactly like the chains which restrained the Chained Man. Of course, they were also making the melting people move towards her, instead of following the Calling Voice, so their legitimacy was questionable. They probably were made to mess with her mind, not to be historically accurate actors. Not only with my mind. Velvet thought, watching the half-melted people coming close to the clearing, triggering Hyde¡¯s formation. The red moon shone over them, illuminating the details of their bodies. If bodies could be used as a descriptive term. None of them were complete. In fact, some of them were having parts sliding and dripping on the floor. Some had half their faces melted, not even their craniums left unaffected, some lacked arms, or legs, and crawled on the floor, leaving a trail made from their torsos. Now, even if they were melting like candles, there wasn¡¯t a burning smell coming from them, and their meat and bones weren¡¯t getting ¡®cooked¡¯. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. That was accurate to the real incident in Velvet''s memory. The people of Casrey melted, not burned alive. Their remains weren¡¯t ashes, they had to be scrubbed from the floor and put in bags to give a proper sea burial. Fire was never involved in the accident. Looking at one of the persons taken from her memory, a woman with gray hair and blue eyes, or eye, since half her face had melted off, Velvet acknowledged that she really had her mother''s eyes. She already knew, since Madam Dorna reminded her sometimes, but it had been so long that she saw those same eyes on something that wasn¡¯t a mirror. You have your mother¡¯s eyes, and your father¡¯s temper. That was the exact sentence Madam Dorna used. But, she always used it as a jab to her temper. Behind her, something triggered Hyde¡¯s formation, right in the opposite direction from where the melted people were coming. Velvet didn''t need to look at it to see who it was, instead ordering a charm to explo- Her magic didn¡¯t respond. Of course it wouldn¡¯t be that easy¡­ Having access to magic would trivialize any sort of challenge. Even so, the fact that she didn¡¯t feel her connection to the Primeval Sea get blocked until she tried to access it was¡­ unnerving. She didn¡¯t lose everything, her chains still sending some connection. But she didn¡¯t have time to think about that, ¡°Hyde!¡± She warned with a shout, rolling away from the half-melted man made to look like her father, before rushing to the side where the melting people weren¡¯t. And, to the side where Hyde¡¯s formation ended. Thin golden threads, now coloured red under the moonlight rose from the floor, and fell from the trees, covering the melting people, and tangling them. Only the counterfeit version of her father managed to escape the binds. With a tug, Hyde activated the formation, tensing the threads, and dragging them to the center of the altar. Velvet pulled out a silver knife. One of the things Harlan included on the bulk of stuff she bought. It wasn¡¯t magically enhanced, since it was just a base for an artifact. But it was enough for what she planned to do. ¡°Hyde, give me one of your paper figurines, and light it up when I told you to.¡± ¡°Here.¡± A paper figurine crawled on Velvet¡¯s hand, and she rolled it around the knife¡¯s edge. Then, with a bit of bad aim (unlike Alrai, she had never tossed knives before), she threw it on the feet of a melting person. A melting person who had an eye like hers. ¡°Now.¡± The knife ignited, burning its legs. The escaping person rushed inside the formation, trying to put out the flames. The Fears really are inspired by my memories. They even behave like their real counterparts. Velvet thought, biting her lips. She was aware that those weren¡¯t her real parents, and any kind of salvation or mercy she could offer them was futile by now. ¡°Frenese.¡± She said. ¡°Eat them.¡± From the beginning of the formation, the chained, floating book trembled, its chains loosening. Something rose from inside the book, pushing aside the pages, making them drool. Velvet expected to hear a growl or something, but only the crumpling pages and the moving chains deigned themselves to make noise. A flesh-like muzzle, covered by leech-like tendrils poked out, silently sniffing the air. Velvet couldn¡¯t pull Frenese out on her own, not even when she had access to the Primeval Sea, in fact, she only loosened the chains, and the devil himself did the rest. Reason why he couldn''t come out completely. Frenese opened one of his mouths, making more drool fall down, before biting down on the air. The whole formation shook, and Velvet covered her eyes, shielding herself from the impact. When the dust settled and she opened them back, no melting people remained, and some pitch black drool dripped from Frenese¡¯s mouth. Velvet was aware that using the devil to deal with the Fears was a bit overkill, and having his help to complete the ritual cost her another petition, with now seven remaining. But, the sooner she dealt with the Fears, the sooner she could go back to the safety of the Mergifari. Two Fears remain. The Calling Voice must be one, since I can still hear it. That means that the other one is¡­ The rustling of leaves, and the cracking of the twisting branches caught her attention. And not only that, her connection to the Primeval Sea worked again. Why take my magic just to give it back now? A bad sensation crept Velvet¡¯s back, as a polite laugh came from the trees. She had never forgotten that laugh, nor the owner. And, even knowing it was a fake, Velvet couldn¡¯t contain a flinch. Because that laugh belonged to Siberina Ropertti. Chapter 117. Derailed train While the events on the Casrey incident were a bit hazy on her mind, her memories surrounding the damned Siberetti were crystal clear. After all, she was one of the first mages she had the ¡®pleasure¡¯ of knowing first hand. And by that she meant being mercilessly pushed around. The train trip, Iren Doyle, Cornelius Graham, Nico and Nathaniel Bliss, Baraviodos¡­ She hadn¡¯t forgotten about that. Even so, as Siberina Ropperti was, she didn¡¯t know the full extent of her abilities. She had seen her throwing glass balls, moving very quickly to evade Cornelius¡¯ attacks and tracking her down at the start. And, she was half a witch or something, having developed a tendency to hunt and kill mages, but without reaching the level where she became obsessed with the act of murdering them. Velvet was alive after meeting her, after all. Now, she had some knowledge of the abilities from a mage of the Gambler Paradigm, namely, that they were more dangerous the closer one got to them. Alrai, her ¡®brother¡¯ could break someone¡¯s neck with one hand, and he was at Velvet¡¯s level, not Siberina¡¯s. So, she should be able to, at least, rip someone¡¯s head off with a hand. Doesn¡¯t that sound nice? Velvet complained inwardly. She had dealt too fast with the first Fear, so the second one chose to go up a notch. More than a notch, actually. It went up to the damned moon. The red, boiling moon in the sky. Hey, it could be worse, the third Fear could become Lothrigern, haha¡­ I would cry for real in that case. Now, if the Goddess of Darkness used a copy of Lothrigern, would that offend Him? She really didn¡¯t know anything about His personality, so she wasn¡¯t sure. Even so, she harbored some hope that the Fears wouldn''t dare to imitate a Deriliam. But she shouldn¡¯t be worrying about what ifs, not when she had Siberina going towards her. She knew her own possibilities, and the idea of defeating Siberina, or simply being a match to her in close combat, was ridiculous. She needed to get as much distance as possible. But not enough distance that she lost sight of her. She still remembered how Alrai had snapped Dianthus¡¯ back in a sneak attack, so not seeing Siberina was equally dangerous as being next to her. Jumping back, Velvet pulled the chains holding shut Frenese¡¯s Book, taking out a broom and flying away from the ground. Not even a single second later, Siberina took a step, becoming a blur and appearing at the same spot Velvet was moments ago. As she looked up, towards her, Velvet looked down. Siberina¡¯s hands did something, their movements too fast for her to understand, but not fast enough for her to not react. Velvet put Frenese¡¯s Book between them, using it as a shield against whatever Siberina had thrown. She had asked Frenese beforehand, to know if doing something like that would trigger their pact, but since the book wasn¡¯t Frenese, it wouldn¡¯t have any effect. In fact, if Velvet managed to use it as a shield for a really powerful attack, and the book broke, the devil couldn¡¯t be happier (not that Velvet believed Frenese could show any signs of happiness), since he would be freed instantly. But, as he mentioned, the book was made under a myriad of powerful formations, spells, and mages (he didn¡¯t mention if he referred to mages as spellcasters or materials, since well, the book cover was made with human skin, so it probably was both), so the idea of it being damaged by attacks was laughable. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. Frenese didn¡¯t laugh saying that, though. But, watching the sparkes of whatever Siberina had thrown being reflected by the book, without damaging it in the slightest, gave Velvet some needed confidence. The book was big, after all, so it worked great as a shield. Not recommended to be used against someone who could steal it from her, so employing it on the Mergifari was a big risk. One she would rather avoid. Going back to the battle, Velvet activated the formation surrounding the altar and Siberina. Boom! The ground exploded, crashing against Sibeina¡¯s position. Velvet looked down with almost manic intensity, taking note of any movement coming from the dust. A short breeze moved through the smoke. She¡¯s going north! Velvet deducted, following after her from a safe distance. It was great that the island was small, since the fact that she was carrying Frenese¡¯s Book made her go slower, and Siberina moved at an incredible speed, enough for Velvet to lose track of her, were the chase to last five seconds more. Burning down the island doesn¡¯t sound too bad now¡­ But the third Fear still hasn¡¯t shown up. Even when almost all her attention was on Siberina, she couldn¡¯t allow herself to forget about the third drop of black goo that fell from the moon. Even when she was flying around, nothing looked different on the island. And she had inspected the place beforehand, so she remembered exactly how it looked down to the last tree. Even under the now faint red light of the moon. The sea, now looking like a moving pool of blood, on the other hand¡­ it was always changing, so it was impossible for her to be sure. Velvet flinched suddenly, realizing something. She got distracted! A string of bad luck! Turning suddenly, she evaded a hard object that almost slammed against her head, grazing her arm instead. Even so, the strength behind the throw made her lose her balance, falling from the broom and from the air. Going down, Velvet managed to slow down her fall with some spells, crashing against some bushes, getting a few scratches, and losing sight of Siberina. Shit! She couldn¡¯t help but curse. Even when she had taken precautions against ¡®fate¡¯, luck was something extremely tricky to manage. Velvet looked around in panic. She needed to find traces of Siberina fast, because the woman was faster than her, and- A whoosh, no, a huracan, shot through the depths of the forest, breaking down trees and stones like a derailed train, with Velvet as last stop. The sound was so immense, and so fast, that Velvet¡¯s ears started to hurt, dulling them enough that she could hear her own heartbeat. Using all her power, Velvet moved Frenese¡¯s Book in front of her, nailing its chains as deep in the ground as she could, as fast as the island¡¯s tiny size allowed her. Not a second later, something crashed against it. And by crashing, it meant exploded. What happens if one puts an immovable object against an unstoppable force? Well, for starters, for everything around the collisioning objects to be devastatingly affected. The trees were reduced to splinters, the rocks flew away, and Velvet got shot backwards just by the force released by the impact, which didn¡¯t even touch her. Slamming against something hard, pain ran through her whole body, and she felt her brain shutting down for several seconds. And, for several seconds, she stood coiled on the floor, waiting for the pain to settle down, just like the raised dust. She would live, in part for the devil¡¯s blood still coursing through her, and in part for the impact being considered a magic attack, which she had some resistance to. Even so, it still hurt like hell. She didn¡¯t want to open her eyes. At all. In fact, maybe the pain would recede if she held still for a while. Just a few minutes, nothing more. Just- Shutting her eyes closed, Velvet lost consciousness. Chapter 118. Joy. Joy. Intrigue. Delight. A clicking and stirring sound, delicate in its nature, like silk being weaved by glass needles, could be heard in the middle of the island; but only if someone dared to get close enough. Which Hyde was trying to prevent. Across the whole zone where Velvet had ended, a multitude of thin, golden threads covered the ground, reaching to the broken down trees, with her as the center. Joy. Joy. Intrigue. Delight. As a demon, Hyde sensed human emotions, even if they were from a false copy. And, the more strong those emotions were, the more he sensed them. ¡®Siberina¡¯s¡¯ emotions were based on Velvet¡¯s memories of her, and, if Velvet believed her to be fearless and unafraid of pain, then the Fear that copied was too. Even when Frenese had taken a bite out of her when they collided, Siberina had simply retreated, going back into the shadows of the night. Hyde hoped she bled out, but that was only wishful thinking, not an actual possibility. With his eight eyes, he looked down to Velvet¡¯s face. It had been less than a minute since she lost consciousness, but Hyde hadn¡¯t tried to wake her up. He knew that Velvet had overworked herself to exhaustion, and not the kind that she could simply get rid of by purifying herself. No, this one went deeper, to the mental level. She wasn¡¯t close to becoming a witch, but she was toying very closely with the possibility. So, a short rest might work for her to realize that. Now, one may ask, if Hyde knew the dangers of her decisions, why didn''t he warn and advise her? Because experience was the best teacher. Sometimes one needed to fuck around and find out, instead of being constantly told what to do. Especially knowledge mages. If they didn¡¯t have a real reason to avoid doing certain stuff, they would always have the nagging doubt if that was a real danger, so having them learn from their mistakes was the best way for them to grow as mages. Also, Hyde might be a low ranked demon, but he was still very much a demon. The only difference between him and Frenese was the rank and Paradigm. Speaking of the sealed devil, since Velvet fainted, the chains tightened again, closing the book shut and letting it down on the ground. So it was just him right now. Well, him and¡­ Joy. Joy. Intrigue. Delight. Hyde wanted to sigh. He should let Velvet rest for a few minutes at least, so he had to hold on on his own. Well, he had been storing his own extra spider silk, plus some materials Velvet gifted him every now and then, so he wasn¡¯t completely defenseless. Also, Siberina had been severely damaged, and, even if her attitude didn''t change, her power output had. Hyde suspected that the more raw power a Fear used, the less they could differ from the owner¡¯s memories. That¡¯s why the Casrey victims were so weak, but their behaviors were different from the originals. And it was why Siberina was so strongly insistent. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. Joy. Joy. Intrigue. Delight. Yes, I know. Hyde complained. But allow me to not share your fake joyfulness. While he was thinking of that, his eight legs were busy covering the zone in golden threads imbued with magic. He was on top of Velvet¡¯s stomach, using her as a formation¡¯s central piece, and having covered her with some protective threads. Frenese¡¯s Book was further away, unresponsive. Joy. Joy. Intrigue. Delight. Flinching his legs suddenly, Hyde pulled on the whole spiderweb, moving all the threads at the same time. Some went up, some went down, left, right, in every angle, with a light emanating from them. Multiple collisions followed, some threads getting chopped off, and some knives falling down. Pulling more thread from his pocket dimension, Hyde hurried to fix the holes in the formation. Leaving even the tiniest of holes was testing luck, which was the dumbest decision possible against a gambling mage. But, Hyde was a spider, and didn''t need to focus all eight eyes and all eight legs on the same job. Flickering two of his legs, several paper figurines fled off, in the direction of the feelings of Joy. Joy. Joy. Delight. Joy. Boom! A chain of explosions rang through that zone, followed by silence. Hyde didn''t like the idea of using paper figurines as explosives, but it was the attack least possible to avoid by chance. Igern''s spears, Nebura''s metals, Cornelius'' blades... All those attacks were avoidable with enough luck. His other choice for hard to avoid attacks were Syon¡¯s sand spells, but those were more of a long term damage thing, not instant. And he needed the instant part a bit more than the long term part. As he busied himself with tracking Siberina, his two resting legs, the ones which supported his body, felt Velvet stirring slightly. She must be dreaming. Hyde thought, not paying much attention to it. In fact, his biggest worry was that the third Fear used Velvet''s dream as inspiration, but he hoped it waited for Velvet to be awake before appearing. Joy. Joy- Anticipating Siberina¡¯s attack, the spider web formation moved again, turning like a kaleidoscope in itself. Come closer. Hyde taunted her in a spiderly fashion. He didn¡¯t want her to come towards him, but spiders didn¡¯t exactly chase their prey. Velvet stirred again under the webs, and Hyde noticed that the chains holding Frenese¡¯s Book stirred with her, coiling like snakes around it. Several specks of light flew towards them, clashing with the threads. Hyde replaced them as soon as possible, instants before more and more projectiles impacted against the web, the resulting collisions forming a spectacle of red lights under the blood moon. A last effort? An all-out attack before her death or a trap? Hyde mused, looking around for any strange things. Joy. Joy. Intrigue. Joy. Siberina¡¯s emotions signals were north- Hahaha. Jumping, Hyde looked up, the short flicker of the red moon¡¯s light not going unnoticed. A mangled silhouette was on top of him, her smile brighter than ever under the moon glow. Frenese¡¯s bite had taken off an arm, part of the chest and half her head. And not only that, her heart was gone, the arm eaten being the left one. Did Velvet subconsciously believe Siberina couldn¡¯t be killed even when destroying her heart? Or was the Fear simply ignoring that detail? Not that Hyde had time to ponder over the question. Siberina was coming down to crush both him and Velvet. Pulling on the threads as fast as he could afford, he uselessly tried to stop her descent by all means possible. But none of them worked. Igern¡¯s spears missed, Dianthus¡¯ golden pillars didn¡¯t move like they should, the paper figurines were impossible to explode without harming them in the process¡­ In a second, Siberina was just close enough to touch them. With a polite, yet maddened smile, betrayed by the glint of her eyes, she laughed softly at them. Clack. A low, hard noise rang next to Hyde. Clack. Clack-clack-clack-clack. Chains shot from the ground, tangling around Siberina, stopping her. Hyde felt Velvet stirring once again, just that, this time, she opened her eyes. ¡°Got you.¡± She said, before the chains started pulling in all directions, adding more and more pressure on the mangled figure of the Gambling Witch. With a wet, crushing and tearing sound, Siberina exploded, her form going back to black goo, falling in all directions. Hyde heard Velvet taking a deep breath, closing her eyes again. ¡°The Third Fear is still out there.¡± He said, reminding her of that fact. ¡°Not anymore.¡± Velvet answered nonchalantly, not bothering to open her eyes. Hyde fell silent, thinking. Velvet sounded certain of that fact, which meant that she had, at least, seen the third Fear. The dream? Did the Fear show up inside her brain? That was the most probable answer, since Velvet didn¡¯t look exactly well rested. If that was the case, the trial was over. And not only that. Something else he noticed was those last chains. Those chains did come from her shadow, which meant- ¡°Oh, Hyde?¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Un-cocoon me.¡± Chapter 119. Boons and Roses Mergifari. Strange place. Unknown time. No entrance. Inside an open room, neither big nor small, devoid of furnishings or decorations, with white marble pillars on the corners, and transparent windows covering the walls, an altar sat in the center. And, on top of the altar, a white clothed figure laid. Human in its superficial appearance, long black hair fell down its back and down the altar, reaching the edges of the room. On its hands, over the bandages-like cloths that covered them, a bowl rested, the figure mixing the contents inside with a wooden pestle. Once it was apparently satisfied with the results, it put the bowl down, sighing. ¡°The thread is closing in, and the time for our meeting is soon.¡± Speaking to no one in particular, the figure talked to the air. Even when denied with the possession of eyes that could see the present, its actions showed a vision of the future. Tilting its head, it listened to the room, empty asides from it. ¡°No, your presence is not needed.¡± A nod, slow. ¡°That thread of fate remains unchanged, I assure you.¡± Once again tilting its head, just, in the other way, it extended its hands, fully covered by a myriad of long cloth strings, which fell down the altar in an uncanny order, as if they were part of its body. ¡°Your fate? It remains unchanged.¡± Falling silent for several seconds, the figure lifted the bowl, before stopping again, looking up, moving its gaze to the window. ¡°Ah, I forgot.¡± ¡°I¡¯m tired of the birds singing in the morning, I want to hear the sea waves at dawn.¡± Without doing anything, the world around it changed. Like a wet painting being caressed, the trees, birds and the sky became blurry, their forms mixing together in a colorful, world covering stain. As fast as it happened, new, colorful dots grew on the void, becoming sand, a shore, and the sea. Immovable at first, the waves waited for the whole world to be painted before starting to go towards the shore. The wind breezee appeared, moving the tropical trees and weakly scattering the sand. None of that wind reached the figure, its clothes only moving together with its arms, as it went back to mixing the green paste inside the bowl. The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. Once it deemed the mixture merged enough, it tossed the bowl to the marble floor in front of it. Shattering, the green substance inside scattered over the room. The figure looked at the stains expressionless, its empty eyes seeing the meaning behind the blemish. ¡°Their interference is getting stronger¡­ I see less and less.¡± Sighing again, it ignored the sullied room, even when the dirt disappeared on its own. ¡°Ah, I forgot.¡± It added, after some minutes of silence. ¡°Bring me some cashews next time. I am craving them.¡± Closing its eyes, the figure went back to waiting for the predestined meeting. ¡­ Opening her eyes, Velvet found herself still on the island, just that now some sun rays were starting to show themselves. Slowly, she got up, dusting her skirt. The night humidity, the flying dust and her own half-dried blood made the act useless, the cloth still dirty and sticky. Her wounds had been stitched by Hyde, so that was nice. Frenese¡¯s Book was still laying on the ground, so Velvet went towards it, planning to store it again. Frenese could''ve helped her to deal with the third Fear, the one who attacked her while asleep, but honestly, there was no need to. Once the Fear entered her dream, it got swarmed by the chains almost instantly, which did more than quick work of it. That confirmed one of her guesses. There was a way of entering the dream¡¯s location safely, like how she and Lothigern entered, and how she ¡®dragged¡¯ entities inside, like Frenese, with her chains, but, it existed also a way of setting some defense trigger on entry, like the Fear did, getting demolished. Well, it was a place made by the Deriliam, and she had seen a small part of the formation, so it made sense that anything less than a Deriliam got squished like a bug if it tried to force entry. That meant that Velvet was basically stuck in the border of a precipice, and, if the dream somewhat rejected her, things would get ugly way too fast. So, to cut it short, things she didn''t have the power to change nor oppose, and, as such, no reason to be worried about. Instead, she could worry about other things, like going back to the Mergifari after cleaning the altar, in case someone found the island and connected the dots. She walked slowly, passing the mop artifact she had obtained from Lox, which erased remains of magic, for the places that she used to set traps and stuff, making them unable to be traced back to her. Her new abilities were supposed to be kept a secret, and only be used during the incursion at the Traversa¡¯s pocket dimension, so leaving any clues as to guess who did the ritual was counterproductive. Even if the island was like super secret and stuff, and probably a sinking hazard, she¡¯d rather not leave it up to luck. If she¡¯d had the firepower necessary, she would even try to sink it herself, just to get rid of any shortcuts. But, since she hadn¡¯t, mopping it was. ¡­ The morning rays were already a significant part of the sky when she reached the altar, which was now a mass of black, melted candle wax. As she cleaned it, Velvet tried her new abilities. Unlike enchantresses Esca¡¯s, which grew with them, sorcerers'' magic depended on the god who bestowed it. The god picked, delivered and retracted the blessings as they saw fit. So, even if being a sorcerer was better than an enchantress at the start, as time went on, enchantresses became a more solid choice, unless the sorcerer was a god¡¯s favorite, or something close. Velvet¡¯s current boons were: A concealing shadow. Like the concealing spell that Udulluay used, just smaller, and it only affected her. Even so, it hid her identity and made her untraceable, which was what she wanted the most. That was the biggest benefit of asking a god for blessings. Their boons were usually subjected to the mage¡¯s current needs, unlike an Esca, who started with low level magic, and the magic was based on their Paradigm, which represented the mage¡¯s deepest desires, not their actual needs. The second one was the shadow chains she used against Siberina. Those ones weren¡¯t as strong as the chains holding shut Frenese¡¯s Book, but they used some of her own blood, corrupting it and converting it into chains. She made sure that the chains weren¡¯t similar to the ones in the chaining charm, so they looked thicker, and had different rings. No knowledge mage should realize that they had the same source. The third boon was light deprivation. It made everything in her surroundings get shrouded in darkness, even if light or fire spells were used. Of course, depending on the strength of her enemies, the time it lasted could be longer or shorter. Those were the three boons she got. One for each Fear defeated, it seemed. She wasn¡¯t going to complain, they worked great for what she needed to do. Which was in two days. Today, she had to go back with Tristan, to decide on the plan of action. Having cleared the altar, Velvet started once again setting another, this time, for a fairy to take her back. Chapter 120. The End and The Means Once she was back at her hut, Velvet really didn¡¯t want to do anything else more than sleep for a bit longer. Even when she had already been sleeping for a while on the island. But, she would have to cope. At least until she went over the plan with Tristan, and, if nothing else came out after that, she would go back here to take a deserved rest. What she couldn¡¯t allow herself to skip was a bath. Under no exceptions, a bath and a change of clothes. Absolute obligation. Because, even the fairy that brought her back looked at her funny. A fairy. A fairy of the forest. Where soap didn¡¯t exist, and clothes were made of plants or bugs. Velvet sighed, dragging herself to the bathroom. One of the best things that mages had was the big bathtubs. Even the cheapest room options had the obligation of including one, big enough for a robust mage to wholly sink and let the miasma out, without polluting all the water. She had seen the ¡°bathtub¡± offers for the expensive houses. Marble pools, bigger than her hut (and by that she meant the three floors), with artificial waterfalls and steam coming out from the warm water. Hell, some of those even gave massages with water, which was probably the best thing to receive after cleaning the body of miasma. The next one being some drink to clean the rotten aftertaste that clinged to her mouth after that. Even so, Velvet wasn¡¯t going to complain about the house she got. Even when she really wanted one of those pools with automated massagers. But enough of that, Velvet pondered, shaking her head as she went to her bathroom. Let¡¯s stop messing around and get ready to face Tristan. ¡­ After a deserved shower, Velvet was now clean. Clean of blood and clean of dirt, dressed in a rather simple outfit. A white linen long sleeved shirt, a blue skirt that reached her ankles, white boots and a small, fancy boater hat with a blue ribbon. On top of all that, she added a cape, dark and thick, because she was a mage, not a tourist, and because the cape helped to hold her trinkets and allowed her to hide her hands when she needed to do sketchy stuff. Which was starting to become an usual occurrence. Now set, she left the hut, walking carefully across the forest. Hyde had said that he didn¡¯t feel any of his spiderweb being damaged from something ¡®human shaped¡¯, but the formation wasn¡¯t impossible to avoid for an advanced mage, so it wasn¡¯t an exact confirmation. She had found some crumbs left from the cookies that the fairy ate, but nothing else was different. Same as the forest surrounding her hut. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. Hyde still took some time to fix the threads damaged by wild animals, before they went to the Archives. And yes, she was stopping to buy Tristan some roasted beef, as the woman told her to do. ¡­ The cauldron boiled, as the contents inside, chunks of hair, scales, some herbs and a blue liquid were mixed in circles, slowly becoming undone. If someone knowledgeable about alchemy saw this job, they would totally lose their shit. The hair was tangled in a ball, when it should be separated in strings before being added to the mix; the scales were still a chunk of fish, and the herbs were unchopped and with some dirt hanging off the roots! The only correct thing was the blue liquid, and even that one wasn¡¯t at the right temperature! Now, the culprit of that horrendous, sloppy job, stopped mixing, instead moving their hand to the table next to them, where more ingredients were: like crystals, bottles of different colored dusts, fruits, and a box with a half eaten chocolate cupcak- Wait, that one wasn¡¯t an ingredient. And, even when it wasn¡¯t one, the responsible of the worst potion ever picked it, taking a chomp, allowing some crumbs to fall inside the cauldron, which was currently being ignored on top of the fire. And, even after swallowing with all the calm in the world, and putting the cupcake back in its box, this shameless failure of a cook didn¡¯t go back to the potion, looking somewhere else instead. Because see, the novel was just sooo interesting and juicy, way more than some bubbly, stinky soup. And, what if some steps were messed up? Her Paradigm was made just for that! As long as she knew what she was making, the exact way she did it didn''t matter! If Knowledge was about the means, not the end, then Remembrance was about the end, not the means. (Of course, the ingredients had to be the same, or she would have ignored even that.) Now, none was worse than the other, but the Remembrance Paradigm was more useful in alchemy and potion making, since the mages of that Paradigm could skip several steps down the line, and still get a perfect result. And Creftalia was an example of a professional skipper. Even more so when she was the only one at the alchemy room in the pocket dimension for Arhontissian mages. She could use the excuse of making potions as a way to get out of work, unwanted conversations and being dragged to places. And, even if she slacked on her current ¡®work¡¯, using her Paradigm would fix any errors, so she still would have proof of her absolute business. All of that as she could read her novel in total tranquilit- ¡°Creftalia.¡± The Creftalia in question screamed, the book falling from her hand into the fire. Which made her scream again, even before identifying the aggressor. It was a limited edition! Signed by the author! It couldn¡¯t meet its fate like that! That was what crossed Creftalia¡¯s mind as she instantly moved one of her legs, punting the book across the room, together with some still burning coals. With some newfound agility, which probably only existed in the deepest parts of her until now, she went after it, jumping and dodging the boxes filled with materials on her path. She didn¡¯t avoid all of them, though. Not that she cared, acting like a bull. Got you! She screamed in her mind, making one final jump towards the flying book, extending her arm until grabbing it, hugging it against her chest. Right before she proceeded to meet the wall with a low thud. After several seconds of pain, when nothing fell on her, and nothing exploded around her, she opened her eyes, lifted her head and looked at the mage who invited themselves in without knocking. It was Winter. Oof. No wonder everything was kept under control. Curling on the floor, trying to make herself look as small and pitiful as possible, Creftalia spoke. ¡°Miss Winter¡­ you scared me.¡± Winter sighed, the kind of sigh used by disappointed tutors, as she pinched her nose. ¡°Creftalia, eating and¡­¡± She looked at the book in her hands, making a not really dissimulated grimace. ¡°Playing is ill-advised in the alchemy room.¡± ¡°I am sorry.¡± Winter sighed again. Creftalia was glad that Winter wasn¡¯t the type of mage that loved punishments. Of course, most mages with two Escas simply stopped caring about novices¡¯ existences and actions, so it wasn¡¯t a strange occurrence. Winter simply watched over them because those were the Queen¡¯s orders, nothing more. And the Queen didn¡¯t even care about them. Creftalia had only seen her twice, once during the Selection and once during the Queen¡¯s Arena she won. And that was the same for every single Arhontissian novice mage. ¡°Have you seen Dianthus?¡± Winter asked. ¡°Not really¡­¡± Wasn¡¯t the guy monitored? How did they lose him now? ¡°If you see him, tell him that the Queen is calling for his presence.¡± Well, not for every single one of them. And she wasn¡¯t even jealous of that fact. Chapter 121. Like cat and mouse The Archives were emptier than usual. Only Merrs remained, arranging some books on the shelves, as she hummed a relaxing but toneless song. Cats weren¡¯t known as great singers, and catgirls definitely shared that, in Velvet¡¯s humble opinion. Even so, the melody stopped when she saw Velvet coming in. Putting the last book down slowly, Merrs turned to face her. ¡°Have you finally come to get the access card?¡± Velvet smiled at her. ¡°No.¡± She said, almost laughing when Merrs bent forwards slightly, like a cat ready to pounce. ¡°I¡¯ve come to see Tristan.¡± To tell the truth, as someone with the 27th position at this year''s novice mages, Velvet probably had an access card for free if she asked. Not as high tier as the ones who Dianthus and company had, but probably mid-high tier for a novice mage. That¡¯s how the Mergifari worked, after all, and, as the Mergifari¡¯s Archivist, Merrs simply wanted to fulfill her role and do her job. But, the thing was¡­ She didn¡¯t need one right now. And, as long as she could annoy Merrs with that, because, as she had noticed, bothering the catgirls was really funny (they reacted like angry cats, their tails bristling and eyes sharpening), she wasn¡¯t getting one. If Velvet could get some joy by annoying someone else, why would she give up and ruin her entertainment source? Imitating Merrs, Velvet also got in a pouncing position, using an instant to eye the spiral stairway. She would make it, or perish (be forced to make an access card) in the attempt. Both of them stared at the other in silence, ready to jump at the slightest movement, but not wanting to be the one to start it. Merrs¡¯ tail swayed slowly, from one side to the other, even when the rest of her didn¡¯t move an inch. Velvet refrained herself from commenting, since she was sure that even a simple breath would cause Merrs to pounce. The standstill staredown went on for a full minute, the seconds passing by. Until a click next to the entrance sounded, a new mage entering the Archives! Using the instant when Merrs ears moved to the sound, Velvet bolted as fast as she physically could, jumping to the side, running straight for the staircase! Merrs screamed, a noise similar to the warcry stray cats made when they fought, as she ran after her, with way more agility and speed than Velvet, even when she was using fastening charms. But, with Velvet holding the initiative now, and the bottom level of the Archives not being big enough for Merrs to recover all the lost length, it was an uphill battle. Even when she did try to change that. And try she did, sidestepping around the bookcases, the chairs and the tables, not grazing a single object as she crossed the floor chasing Velvet. If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. In less than one second, both of them had moved from the entrance to the stairs at top speed, with Velvet up front. Velvet entered the stairway, turning her body sideways just in time to evade Merrs crashing against the wall, almost grabbing her with her claws. Jumping and skipping over the steps, she climbed without looking back, headed towards Tristan¡¯s room, hearing Merrs growls and movements right behind her. She could already see the door. With a final jump, Velvet grabbed the handle, opened the door, entered, and shut the door with a bang, before pressing her body, with her full weight against it. Bang! Bang! Ban-ban-ban-ban-bang! ¡°Just take the loss and move on!¡± Velvet shouted. ¡°Better luck next time, hahaha!¡± ¡°You!¡± Merrs screeched. ¡°Ahhh! When I get you!¡± Even so, she stopped slamming the door, replacing it by growling. Velvet looked at the insides of the room, still pushing the door shut. Tristan returned her look, as Velvet smiled sheepishly back at her, before shaking her head and sighing, returning to her work. A squeak at her feet made Velvet move her head down. The library mouse had come out, climbing her clothes until getting to her hand. The mouse seemed to listen to Merrs growls (that was what Velvet guessed, as she didn¡¯t speak mouse), before squeaking in retaliation, probably getting a boost in confidence because of the door separating cat and mouse. ¡°I will get you too someday.¡± Merrs said, before stepping aside from the door, and going down the stairs. Guess their species enmity runs deeper than lab modifications¡­ Velvet laughed, waiting for a bit before moving away from the door, in case Merrs parting was a fluke. Only when Tristan cleared her throat did she part ways with the door, obediently sitting in front of her. ¡°Long time no see, Tris!¡± Velvet cheerfully smiled at her, starting to take out the food she brought, lest the woman tried to overwork her again. ¡°Don''t call me that.¡± Tristan said, moving the machine she was working with, a rectangle made with glass tubes, with golden levels at each side; eyeing the food. Velvet bit back her grin, the taste of victory feeling better than the roasted beef she hadn¡¯t tried yet. ¡­ As they ate, Tristan glared at her in silence several times, before sighing. ¡°So you didn¡¯t get the news.¡± With her mouth full, Velvet hummed. ¡°Hm?¡± ¡°That guy, the special one, got his ass kidnapped.¡± At first, she didn''t understand, until her thoughts connected with a sudden click. ¡°You mean Dianthus?¡± ¡°Yes, that one.¡± Tristan didn¡¯t look very interested in the news, which made Velvet think that the mechanic had somewhat misunderstood her relationship with Dianthus as friendship or something, and only wanted to gauge her reaction. C¡¯mon, since when are you the teasing type? Not planning on giving her any satisfactory reaction, Velvet remained smiling. ¡°But how? Wasn¡¯t he monitored?¡± Dianthus had told her that, after all. ¡°Yes, his caretaker was murdered.¡± ¡°And his caretaker was unable to buy enough time for help to arrive¡­?¡± When Dianthus spoke of the mages watching his actions, he made it sound like they were powerful. ¡°It was over in a second. No one had time to react.¡± That meant that the perpetrator was an absolute powerhouse. Probably a family¡¯s head or above. What about other powerhouse- She almost asked. Of course, the really powerful mages probably already knew who was the perpetrator, but¡­ Why would they help Arhontissian mages? Arhontissian¡¯s maintaining ¡°ownership¡± over the Chosen One was detrimental for them, and losing him was an immense hit to Arhontissa¡¯s, or, more exactly, to her Queen¡¯s power and authority. And, if her deduction of the person responsible behind the breaking of Frenese¡¯s seal was right, and they were Arhontissian, it made sense that no mage unaffiliated to them was keen on helping, if not outright planting obstacles. If Velvet could deduct it, others also could, so that knowledge was hardly a secret. ¡°Hmm¡­ they must¡¯ve been raising hell.¡± Since she was away during the time of the incident, she hadn¡¯t had time to find out about it. ¡°They certainly are trying to, but any mage who can defeat one with two Escas in an instant is a force to be careful with.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t the Director the only one with three?¡± It was common mage knowledge that only the Mergifari¡¯s Director possessed three fully opened Escas. ¡°Yes, but the facts are those. Whoever kidnapped your friend was able to crush a Two Esca in an instant.¡± When Velvet didn¡¯t jump with a ¡®We¡¯re not friends!¡¯, Tristan sighed and continued. ¡°Only a true Archmage can do that.¡± Now that was a term Velvet had never heard before. ¡°How many Escas does an Archmage possess?¡± ¡°Two and half.¡± So the Director being the odd one out remained. ¡°But all of them are too old and retired, so they usually spend the rest of their days closed inside their pocket dimensions. For one of them to come out right now¡­¡± ¡°It makes your plan easier, no?¡± Velvet finished her sentence, smiling. If everyone was watching Arhontissian¡¯s mages movements, and Arhontissian¡¯s mages were watching everyone else''s, anyone non Arhontissian who wanted something from non Arhontissian mages had gained a golden opportunity. Tristan¡¯s lips curled, almost imitating Velvet¡¯s smile. Almost. Chapter 122. Inward mirror, outside cat Without saying anything, Tristan pulled out the round artifact made by gears stacked on top of each other, activating the concealed zone. Even if the Chosen one had been kidnapped, the world kept on moving, and the Pioneer Three was set to arrive tomorrow, with several important family¡¯s heads being present to receive it. Maybe even more than previously thought. ¡°Here¡¯s what you will do.¡± Tristan started, once the concealment took effect over the whole room. ¡°I¡¯ve scheduled several deliveries for tomorrow, all of them directed for pocket dimensions on the First Tower.¡± Velvet¡¯s smile twitched. Yes, she was aware that playing delivery girl was a way of building an alibi as to why she was roaming around there, but that didn¡¯t mean that doing it wasn¡¯t basically free labor. ¡°The first three mages you will deliver to,¡± Tristan continued, ignoring her expression. ¡°Are extremely¡­ ¡®meticulous¡¯.¡± Not the word she wanted to use, clearly. ¡°They will check that the artifacts work correctly and everything is in order. It will take half an hour for each.¡± ¡°Those are in the Ernon, Galibi and Alchor families pocket dimensions. They will be waiting for you, so don¡¯t be late.¡± ¡°The fourth one won¡¯t look at the artifact while you¡¯re there,¡± Tristan continued. ¡°Nor will he ask you any question about it. So, once he tells you to exit, here¡¯s what you will do¡­¡± ¡­ In the end, going over the whole plan took one hour. It wasn¡¯t the plan itself what ate most of the time, but the artifacts being delivered. As to quote Tristan¡¯s words: Even when she had hurried with those orders, that didn¡¯t mean that Velvet was allowed to fumble the delivery job and damage Tristan¡¯s brand (Name? Reputation?). She needed to know what questions the customers would ask, and the pertinent answers. Tristan didn¡¯t give her any info on the fourth customer¡¯s artifacts, though. It was a private order, so she didn¡¯t need to know. Or try to know. Since official and upper mages had some ways to detect lies, Velvet wasn¡¯t even gonna try to glance inside the container. Privacy, delivery and scheming matters aside, right at this moment, Velvet was making her own artifact, the one she had wanted to do since buying the bulk of materials from Harlan. That¡¯s to say, modifying the cursed mirror. To make possible the handling of the mirror without being reflected on it, Velvet had painted over the surface, using a sticky paint that would become elastic once dried, which made its future removal easier. It also made it unusable until the changes were over, but that wasn¡¯t a problem. The mirror''s main weaknesses were how delicate it was, the fact that it only reflected in one direction and the difficulty using it efficiently. Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. Velvet wanted to combine it with Sion¡¯s umbrella at first, but that would mean losing her only defensive artifact, so, in the end, she tried to make a staff ¡®from scratch¡¯. The mirror was made of glass and silver, so bending it with magic wasn¡¯t impossible. It was complicated, because it was her first time, but not impossible. On her mental blueprints, the mirror staff was ball shaped on the top, with the mirror looking inwards while it was deactivated, and expanding once it was activated, covering her and reflecting her surroundings. The formation needed to make that possible wasn¡¯t complicated, but it was tedious, since it had to switch the ¡°solid¡± state of the mirror while it was in ball form to ¡°liquid¡± when it was activated, without damaging the cursed spirit inside. Speaking of the spirit, it was a doppelg?nger, that¡¯s to say, it was a conscience replacing curse. If someone looked at their reflection on it, they would be drawn inside the mirror, while an ¡®evil¡¯ (term depending on the mage it was applied to) version of them would take over. It wasn¡¯t as strong as it sounded, since the doppelg?nger got weaker and weaker the more it was outside the mirror, and if the person reflected was stronger than it, the possession time would get shortened by a lot. There were ways to make it stronger, but Velvet didn¡¯t have the compatible Paradigm, the necessary spells, or the intention; since making a ghost stronger usually implied giving it living human sacrifices. Building the staff completely would take her a full week, five days if she really pushed herself, taking into consideration the time spent on testing the formations to see if they worked correctly before incorporating them. Tristan also gave her a few pointers hidden as remarks. Like ¡®What is the function of those holes you are carving on the metal?¡¯ or ¡®What¡¯s that screw for?¡¯. She wasn¡¯t asking Velvet for any explanation when she asked that. In fact, the first time Velvet proudly explained her reasoning, Tristan had stared at her in silence before going back to her own work. Bending the mirror was the delicate part, so she only moved when she was sure that Tristan was glancing at her, to avoid any mishaps. It worked nicely, the previous almost useless mirror now getting a slight curve. Velvet only bent it a bit, since bending it completely in one day would break it. Once she felt that she had advanced enough with the staff, she waved goodbye to Tristan, and went to the door to exit the Archiv- The moment she opened the door, the quick succession of steps climbing the stairs made her close the door again. ¡°Ejem.¡± Velvet coughed, leaving the door and approaching the small window on the opposite side of the room, reaching towards it. ¡°How far away is the floor?¡± ¡°Weren¡¯t you proudly declaring your adulthood weeks ago? Act like one.¡± Tristan mocked her. ¡°But- wait, isn¡¯t adulthood being responsible for your actions? I¡¯m taking full responsibility for this, I swear!¡± She answered, touching the window¡¯s borders. The window was small, but she should fit without problems. ¡°Also, adulthood is jumping into calculated risks!¡± Opening the window, Velvet first looked down, pushing her head outside. She then went back in, stepped over the frame and stood there, before looking towards the door. ¡°It¡¯s unlocked, you know?!¡± She spoke towards it. Immediately, the door slammed (carefully) open, and Merrs entered. ¡°Let there be known.¡± Velvet said, grinning at her. ¡°That bookworm cats aren¡¯t good hunters.¡± ¡°You-!¡± Not giving her any time to keep talking shit, Merrs dashed across the room, intending to finally catch her. But Velvet was ready, jumping into the window, hanging at the outside edges. Right before Merrs¡¯ claws went outside, she released her hold, falling from the Tower. Face up, just so that she could give Merrs a last daily shit eating grin. ¡°See ya tomorrow!¡± Screaming in rage, Merrs cursed at her, her nails digging on the exterior walls. The noise of someone clearing her throat made her quickly go back inside, though. Ignoring the things that had just happened, Tristan didn¡¯t raise her head from her job. ¡°Close the window when you exit.¡± ¡°O-of course Maam.¡± Instantly stopping the annoyed twitch of her tail, Merrs closed the window, grimacing when a paper figurine with a smile cut on its face waved at her mockingly, stuck on the other side. Not that paper figurines could mock someone. But to Merrs it was doing exactly that. And she wanted to knock on the glass so badly now¡­ but not while Tristan was there, of course. For now, she would grit her teeth, shut the window to perfection, ignore the mouse squeaking noise coming from inside the machine Tristan was working in, smile and go out. But, the next time she saw Velvet¡­ She was really going to catch her. Really! Chapter 123. Blue stone, silver glass The rest of her day passed quietly. Since she didn¡¯t need to buy anything else, and was still tired from her night activities, Velvet simply went back home after dealing with Tristan¡¯s issues. ¡°Something is touching my webs inside the hut.¡± Hyde said, just before she reached the building. She simply couldn¡¯t enjoy a nice nap without issues, couldn¡¯t she? Stopping to look at the windows, she asked, ¡°Which ones?¡± Wanting to pinpoint the intruder¡¯s location. ¡°It started with the kitchen ones, but it¡¯s moving. It¡¯s something small and hairy, two legged.¡± Hyde made a pause, checking the web movements. ¡°It¡¯s not breaking them, just brushing or something¡­¡± Velvet interrupted him, her thoughts connecting, a guess forming in her mind, based on her experiences, and a book she read not long ago. ¡°Like cleaning them?¡± ¡°... Yes.¡± When dealing with fairies, the summoner could unwillingly make their presence (and house), appealing for some fairies species to move in, like brownies. And, unlike their summoned counterparts, those were a bit difficult to expel. At least not without suffering the faerie cursequence of being a bad host. But, if the fairy was cleaning her house for free, she wasn¡¯t going to complain. If anything, she would start buying milk and leaving it on top of the fireplace. No longer hesitating, Velvet entered her house with confidence, without searching for the fairy. She simply treated it as if it¡¯s presence was a normal thing. The hut was cleaner, though. Even when Velvet took care of cleaning it regularly, the fairy did a more meticulous job than her. Of course, it ignored the zones where iron objects or furniture parts stood, but Velvet wasn¡¯t going to complain about it. Leaving her new hutmate matters alone, she went to her room, throwing herself on the bed to get a needed and deserved rest. ¡­ Once she fell asleep, she didn¡¯t find the void waiting for her, nor the Chained Man. Instead, a forest full of brambles welcomed her, with an old, abandoned path going deeper. Velvet looked down at herself. Her clothes were her own, same as any details that made her, her, not someone else, like the dream at the temple, where she was a priestess. That priestess looked similar to her though, just not similar enough for them to share the same exact appearance. This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. Lowering her hands, Velvet walked down the path, looking around. She had never seen those types of brambles, nor the blue roses growing on them. They were big, bigger than her open palm, which made sense, seeing the thickness of the branches, whose stems were comparable to the trees surrounding her hut. A dark grayish green color, which only made the blue roses pop out even more, and a hard, almost stone cold texture composed them. The ¡®forest¡¯ was humid, with water droplets resting over the flowers, reflecting the little lights coming from the moon between the branc- The moon was fake. It didn¡¯t take too much work for Velvet to notice. Unlike the normal moon, who had small craters on its surface, this one was a plain circle, with barely any details. Just like the fake moons and suns that hung on pocket dimensions. That basically meant that the dream location was inside one. It was a meaningless detail currently, but a detail nonetheless. These flowers must be homemade. No wonder I¡¯ve never seen any sort of flower like this, not even on Coris. And they had almost any kind of flower there. Velvet thought, still walking down the path, waiting for the moment something changed inside the dream. And, eventually, something changed in the distance. The branches started clearing, giving an opening to a strange building. A broad, big but short stone staircase welcomed her, with a rectangular stone old building. Velvet didn¡¯t know how to describe it exactly, never having seen something similar. The entrance was an imposing wooden door, more than four meters tall. Over it, several windows, one round, and two rectangular, made from sticking different colored glass shards reflected the moonlight, dyeing it in a myriad of tones. The roof was pointy, the tiles brown. Velvet hesitated for a bit, even when she was aware that it was a dream, and it probably was unable to permanently harm her. Some of the brambles crawled over the floor, reaching the walls and burrowing themselves inside. They didn¡¯t open any hole or tear any wall, not allowing Velvet to see inside the strange building. So, taking a deep breath, she steadied herself, walking over the stairs, towards the immense door. Two heavy rings as handles rested on each side. Velvet grabbed one, assuming that she should use all her strength to pull the door open. But that soon was proven incorrect, when the door easily moved under her hands, not making a single noise. The insides of the building were even more mesmerizing than the outsides. The floor was made of porcelain tiles, gray in color, which didn¡¯t matter, since the colorful lights coming from above complemented their dullness. On the sides of the room there were rows of wooden benches, all of them positioned so that the people that sat looked at the end. And, at the end, there was an altar, and, at the altar, there was a coffin. Peerless white in color, except for the intricate silver details that adorned it, and the now thinner brambles that creeped towards its interior, their texture now having become glass, translucid, reflecting the boreal like lights. As if under a spell, Velvet walked down the aisle towards it, wanting to know what, or who was inside. If they were dead, or alive. Her shoes clacked on the floor as she moved, avoiding the thorns, who were in the process of changing the material that composed them, from stone to glass. Maybe it wasn¡¯t even glass, just like it wasn¡¯t even stone. The roses hanging on the coffin didn¡¯t look completely solid, their petals moving under the nonexistent wind, the humidity droplets still on them. Slowly, Velvet reached the coffin, leaning over it. Inside, there was a guy. Dressed in white, long pale hair tied up over the neck zone, and fair features, with his chest moving up and down slowly, which signaled that he was alive. It was Dianthus, sleeping or unconscious, and, by seeing how the brambles curled around him, Velvet assumed the second option. Is this a dream, or a vision? Velvet asked herself. And, if it''s a vision, is it from the present or the future? She didn¡¯t touch him, not him and not the roses, instead looking at what he was holding. Because Dianthus looked the same as she remembered, except the strange object that was on his hands, folded over his chest. Since Dianthus was grabbing it with both hands, and it was a small object, Velvet only saw a part of it, a golden piece. Should I try to steal it? She didn¡¯t know if the object was dangerous, but the dream wasn¡¯t over yet, which meant that she needed to do something more. She reached slowly for it, glancing at Dianthus, who silently stared back at her. ¡°Yes,¡± He said. ¡°It can work.¡± Velvet retracted her hand instantly, but the dream was already ending, whatever she needed to be done was done. The building got quickly swallowed by the void, the brambles, benches and glass windows getting shrouded in darkness before disappearing. Velvet took a deep breath, her heart beating fast. Dianthus'' sudden awakening had surprised her. No, not Dianthus¡¯. Dianthus'' eyes were golden, not blue. Chapter 124. Three deliveries, three cats, three steps Velvet awoke hours later, once it was morning already, the rest of her dream being the usual thing, with nothing else to show. She felt quite well rested, all things considered. And, since the day was going to be turbulent, she was taking that rest as absolutely deserved. Who was Dianthus, anyway? She didn¡¯t have any business with someone called that, and didn¡¯t even know that name. For real. As someone who wasn¡¯t interested in meddling on whatever the archmage who kidnapped Dianthus planned to do, Velvet focused on her present matters. That¡¯s to say, today was the day when the Pioneer Three disembarked on the Mergifari, and the day when she had to infiltrate the Traversa¡¯s family pocket dimension, under Tristan''s petition. So, Velvet went to ready herself, like she did everyday. She took a shower, dressed up, had breakfast, made sure to leave something for the new fairy, made some charms and checked her material stash. Once she was satisfied with everything, she took a deep breath and went out, into the woods, and towards the Mergifari. ¡­ She arrived at the First Tower a while later, the one where the pocket dimensions for all families were maintained. Maintaining a pocket dimension stabilized, and anchored to the Mergifari took a lot of power and magic, so it made sense that the mages moved them all to a single location, where any problem that arose could be dealt with in an instant. After all, these pocket dimensions weren¡¯t like the ones used to contain beasts and artifacts that Velvet and other mages used, which were relatively small, easy to break and easy to take and put stuff. No, instead, like the pocket dimension where the Opening took place, those were several square kilometers, with their own fauna, flora, and a residence big enough to hold all the mages that lived inside. Like a miniature world, everything inside was made to be self-sustainable, working like a whole individual ecosystem. And, the fact that the pocket dimensions were so self sustainable meant that some mages could live there without going out for decades, centuries even. Now, Velvet didn¡¯t know how some mages increased their lifespan, but the fact that there was a way was evident. She had seen some exaggerated raisins walking around. And some less like raisins and more like inhuman mages. Like Alrai and Siberina¡¯s ¡®father¡¯, Siberiald, with his long legs, long arms, long everything and slender complexity, whose ribs looked like an accordion when he laughed. The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. ¡­ It was almost like one could try to guess a mage¡¯s age by either the wrinkles or the uncanniness. Of course, some mages were uncanny consequence of eating demons. Or just because their Paradigms worked like that. Anyway, she didn¡¯t see the archmage holding Dianthus captive, so she wasn¡¯t sure if they were in the raisin or the uncanny category. Not that she wanted to see them, anyway. She might be a knowledge mage, but even she knew that pursuing that information was suicide. Anyway, she was at the First Tower now, searching for Tristan, who was supposed to give her the artifacts that had to be delivered, before the woman left to receive the Pioneer¡¯s Three arrival. That was Tristan¡¯s own alibi, and the reason why she ¡®dumped¡¯ her delivery work on Velvet today of all days. And, it was also the reason they met today on the First Tower, and not the Archives. Hm? That she told Merrs ¡°See you tomorrow?¡±? That was a lie, of course! Merrs could wait to jump at her for the whooole day, pouncing at every mage that entered the Archives, and stalking the entry door like a hawk-cat, that Velvet wasn¡¯t going to show up. Nope, she had other plans. Even when she had told Merrs the opposite absolutely on purpose. But hey, if she was such a petty silly cat that waited for her the whole day, Velvet would make sure to mock the hell out of her the next time they met. Looking at the counter where Murrs was working, Velvet observed her. The three (that she knew of) catgirls looked exactly the same, down to the last detail. Only the necktie each one of them wore with the gray suit had a different color. Blue for Murrs, red for Mirrs and green for Merrs. So, if there was a Marrs and a Morrs, they probably wore orange and purple neckties. Not that Velvet had seen any. Maybe there were only those three, since they were experiments and all that. Clearing her throat, Velvet left the catgirls'' matters aside, walking to Tristan, who was just coming down the staircase that went to the elevators, which at the same time connected to the entrances of the pocket dimensions. Tristan was a bit late, but it was according to Velvet¡¯s calculations. The woman walked down the stairs, cradling something in her arms. Something wrapped in red cloth, big like a baby, which Velvet hoped it wasn¡¯t. It obviously wasn¡¯t, but the demon baby as a formation core was a thing that happened, so she was naming all the possibilities. Maybe it was a mechanical diabolical baby, anyway. ¡°Good morning!¡± Velvet said, extending her arms to grab the not a baby lump. She was curious, after all. ¡°Hm. Hey.¡± Tristan groaned, bothered by being taken out of her job, and being made to welcome a ship. Velvet guessed that by how she was dressed. Tristan''s usual dress, full of trinkets and pockets had been replaced by a red, elegant dress, complementing her hair. She still wore some tall, brown leather boots that reached her tights, and Velvet saw some metallical things hidden between the dress folds. Also, Tristan wore some kind of strange collar, made of golden threads shaped like gears, almost drawn into her skin. Giving her the lump, which also was baby weighed, Tristan continued speaking. ¡°The rest of the artifacts are in my home, on the entrance. Do not snoop around. Murrs already knows you have free entry.¡± ¡°I like the sound of free things.¡± Not laughing at her joke, Tristan unwrinkled her dress, now free from carrying the lump. ¡°Do not mess anything up, we will see each other in a few hours.¡± ¡°Of course!¡± Giving her a single nod, Tristan left, leaving Velvet behind, who held the lump like a baby. Velvet looked at her disappear, before moving her arms up and down slightly, trying to see if the lump reacted in some way. When it didn¡¯t, she sighed, walking to Murrs¡¯ counter. ¡°Hello! I have a delivery for Ernon Maschei.¡± She told her, smiling. ¡°Tell him if I can get an entry.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Murrs said, also making a customer service smile. ¡°Would you also like to get the Archives access card with it?¡± Velvet smile froze, and she quickly did a double take. ¡°You three don''t swap jobs, right..?¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t you like to know?¡± Recovering her own customer service smile, Velvet spoke. ¡°Only asking the Ernons for entry is enough, thanks!¡± Both of them smiled at the other, while Murrs pressed some stuff under her desk, the seconds passing. Velvet forced herself not to sweat, the idea of Murrs being Merrs and jumping at her from the counter not that impossible for comfort. After less than a minute, Murrs spoke again. ¡°They agreed, you can enter!¡± Maintaining the smile competition, Velvet took her time to say goodbye to Murrs, strolling to the stairs with calm. Even when she wasn¡¯t that calm. Damned cat. Chapter 125. The noble and the jester Ethra Graham looked at his reflection in the mirror. The wounds he got inflicted during the opening were no longer visible, now healed under the use of potions and medical care. At least Velvet didn¡¯t target his face. He could give her that. Of course, she didn¡¯t extend the same ¡®mercy¡¯ to his brother, Cornelius. Not that that was too unusual in mage society. Every day, mages disappeared, and every day, new mages popped out. Whether by murder or corruption, it was a common occurrence. But, unlike with corruption, murder usually left behind someone to blame. His mother blamed the Siberettis more than she blamed Velvet, even when she was the one that dealt the killing blow. Not that that was without reason, since the ones that gave her the opportunity were the Siberettis, and not Velvet¡¯s own skills. The same way that Cornelius used Siberina to kill Iren in his place, but now being Siberina using Velvet to kill Cornelius in her place. Siberina Siberetti. The true culprit of Cornelius¡¯ death. Now, Ethra didn¡¯t know much about her; even when the Siberetti family was part of the Charlampian mage families, they were isolated from the rest, due to their infamy. Yes, he could ask Alrai, who would surely answer any question, but he liked to keep Alrai¡¯s matters and his family¡¯s matters separated. Even when his mother didn¡¯t exactly like that idea, to Ethra, even when Alrai was a Siberetti, not all Siberettis were Alrai, which made them different things. That was his personal opinion, thought, shared only by him. Even Alrai laughed at him when he told him the same thing. Not that he cared about his reaction. He was too prideful to let someone else¡¯s opinions change his. After all, Pride was the Graham¡¯s Paradigm, shown on the way they behaved themselves, their magic and their looks, which made people lower their heads in awe and envy. Golden hair that shone under the sun, almost making a halo, and red eyes that even gems couldn¡¯t match in intensity. As he had said previously, even Velvet had avoided damaging his face, which was telling on its own. If there was some kind of complaint anyone could make about the Grahams, it was the inexpressiveness that characterized them, the lack of emotions they showed at all times. But that was because they were too prideful to react to anyone¡¯s stimuli, whenever those were good or bad. Even after Cornelius¡¯ Graham murder, neither him nor his mother Adeline had shown too much reaction, all due to their pride. They were too prideful to feel sadness, and too prideful to show grief. After the notice came, one of Adeline¡¯s reactions had been to put Ethra in Cornelius'' place, as to make him the future heir of the Grahams. And that was the reason why today he was dressing up neater than usual. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. To welcome the Pioneer Three''s arrival, the third of the ships that formed the float of the Snowbreak Project, one of the few things that made all mages drop their enmities without issues. It should have been Cornelius¡¯ responsibility, but now it was his. Ethra grabbed a glass bottle of cologne, from a row filled with them. Spraying a bit of it on his wrist, he smelled it, before clearing his hands and grabbing another. Two of those cologne bottles were presents from Cornelius¡¯. His brother had always been awful at giving presents, so their smell wasn''t of Ethra¡¯s taste, which made him put them in the furthest place possible. Picking another bottle, this time one he approved of, he sprayed some on his neck and wrists, before putting it down and looking at his reflection again. Perfect. Perfect enough for him to make heads turn, without the need for lust spells or similars, only with- Staring at the sides of his face, Ethra almost frowned, opening a drawer where rows of golden and crimson red earrings rested; the colors that suited him better. Passing over them, his fingers touched ones gifted by Alrai, stopping. Now, they weren¡¯t the best choice to compliment his clothes, maybe the third one, but Ethra still liked them. Like his other accessories, this one also was enchanted, as Alrai had said: ¡°These are made with the blood inside a Gambler¡¯s index finger, so they will bring luck. Maybe even the good kind!¡± Now, even when he hadn¡¯t asked Alrai about his family, he had asked about the Gambler Paradigm once, while they were on the airship to the Mergifari, on one of the open air platforms from where passengers could enjoy fresh air, with railings going from side to side as security measures. Back then, Ethra was enjoying some wine, leaning over the railings, with Alrai tossing paper projectiles towards the sky next to him. ¡°Ah, it¡¯s quite simple, actually.¡± Was what Alrai had said. ¡°It is about fate, yes, but it¡¯s not about winning over it, or even benefiting from it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s the Gambling Paradigm, not the Prophet Paradigm, haha!¡± ¡°There is no Prophet Paradigm.¡± Ethra had corrected. Alrai had turned around, pressing his lower back against the railings, his upper body bending into dangerous levels, hanging outside the airship. Ethra didn¡¯t pull him in, sipping from his glass with calm. ¡°What I mean is, gambling isn¡¯t about winning. For example¡­ Do you know the game of Crouper¡¯s Roulette?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± It was a game that consisted of filling a revolver with less than six bullets, usually one, with each participant shooting themselves at least once in their own heads. A stupid game, in Ethra¡¯s opinion. ¡°Well, then, if the Prophet Paradigm is about who the bullet hits¡­¡± ¡°There is no Prophe-¡± ¡°Shh, lemme speak. If the Prophet Paradigm is about who the bullet hits, the Gambler Paradigm is about the thrill of the situation¡­¡± Alrai made a gun with his fingers, pointing at Ethra¡¯s head from outside the airship. ¡°Of the instants before the Bang.¡± ¡°You can always make things more interesting before the bullet hits. Like pointing the gun at the person in front of you, or giving it to the person next to you, so that she can be the one to deal the killing blow.¡± Ethra¡¯s brows almost furrowed, the meaning behind the words clear. Siberina giving Velvet the chance of killing Cornelius¡¯ wasn¡¯t fate, but it made that future more interesting for the Gambler. Cornelius¡¯ death was decided, since defeating Siberina was an idiot¡¯s wish. But Siberina changed the way his death went, just to make the after-bang more interesting for her. ¡°Is that so.¡± Ethra finally had said, his expression unchanging. ¡°We should play Crouper¡¯s Roulette sometime.¡± ¡°I am not doing that.¡± Ending his reminiscences, Ethra clipped the earrings with a click, moving his head side to side to look at them. They were small, golden with a red, round jewel inside, Not perfect, but will do. Taking a step back from the mirror, Ethra left his bathroom, his room, and the Graham¡¯s house, leaving the pocket dimension. He appeared on top of the stairways from the First Tower, before starting to go down them. And right before coming across Velvet, who was going up. ¡°It can even be the good type of luck!¡± Alrai¡¯s voice resonated in his mind. Cursing the earrings, his heart tightened, pressured by the presence of someone with a Bloody Esca. It was even worse than the previous time he had seen Velvet, when they fought on the Opening. He knew that she had been the one that killed the mages who became the Devil¡¯s Portal, tainting her own Esca even more. Mages with normal Escas didn¡¯t like the presence of the ones with bloody ones in an instinctual manner. Even when he usually was with Alrai, who also had a bloody one, Velvet¡¯s felt worse, more asphyxiating than his. Of course, some of the blood covering her Esca was his brother¡¯s, so that probably affected it in some way. ¡°Oh.¡± Velvet said, smiling at him, showing some teeth. ¡°If it isn¡¯t Count Graham,¡± He didn¡¯t miss the lowkey mockery, the lingering threat under her words. ¡°Ready for taking a stroll, I see.¡± ¡°Indeed.¡± Ethra didn¡¯t fall into her game, the stairway being plenty ample for both, crossing her and continuing walking down. Even when he had to force his steps so as to not rush. Chapter 126. Pocket Tower Pocket Velvet watched Ethra¡¯s back as he went down the stairs, passing next to her. If he¡¯s already healed, Alrai and Agorn probably are too. She thought, turning her head around and continuing. She wasn¡¯t worried about Ethra and Agorn, but Alrai and Ethra¡¯s family were another problem. Like her, Alrai was the petty type, so expecting him to not try to pull any sketchy thing was delusional. He probably was waiting for the chance already. It probably wouldn''t be while she was on the First Tower, but after that? Who knew when he would show up. Velvet would have to add his name again to the list of ¡®Mages to watch out for¡¯. A list that only increased. Clicking her tongue, she walked to the door supposed to take her to the Ernons pocket dimension, opening it and entering. A clear, cloudless gray sky was the first thing welcoming her. The second was the extremely humid floor, basically mud, that started to swallow her boots, and from where red flowers bloomed. Red and gorgeous flowers, resembling spider lilies, except that these ones grew on mud. Velvet walked with some effort, stepping onto a path made of white stones. A mage was waiting there, their identity covered up by a long gray cloak that reached the floor, dirtied by dust and water at the bottom. Not commenting on it, Velvet lifted the wrapped lump slightly. ¡°Tristan sent me to deliver this to Ernon Maschei.¡± The mage nodded, extending their hands to grab the package, to which Velvet obliged. ¡°Yes, I know.¡± Once it was in their hands, the mage unwrapped it, satisfying Velvet''s long lasting curiosity. It was a mechanical baby! Actually, no. In fact¡­ she didn¡¯t know what it was, honestly. It looked like a glass bubble covered with protrusions, with more glass bubbles inside, all of it filled with a clear, transparent liquid. It had a lid, probably to put something inside. The mage let the cloth fall down on the mud, and pushed their¡­ his hood back. Ernon Maschei, or at least, Velvet supposed that was him, was a man in his thirties, with short reddish brown hair and an immense scar crossing from the right side of his forehead to the lower side of his left ear. His eyes were clear blue, with a penetrating gaze, intensified by the scar. He had some kind of mature, attractive and dangerous air. Not that Velvet was into it, she still preferred Igern or Lothrigern¡¯s more deadlycate appearance. She was simply being objective. Ernon moved the artifact in his hands, turning it over and moving the lid. ¡°Pick a flower.¡± He said after several seconds. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Velvet did as told, taking one of the red flowers growing in the mud, with care as to not dirty herself. Once she had it, she gave it to Ernon, who instantly put it inside the glass artifact. The water moved, the flower getting separated from the stem, the dirt and the dust, before the now singled out flower entered one of the inner glass bubbles, staying there. ¡°Another.¡± Velvet did as told again, and, once again, Ernon put the flower in the container, watched it separate, and ordered her to pick another. So she did so. Again. Not like Ernon was doing it on purpose, Velvet realized, looking at the flowers. They withered extremely fast, and the artifact only dissected one at once, but stopped their withering. It is some kind of preservation artifact¡­ Velvet thought, still picking flowers, one by one. Now, whatever he is trying to check should be the rate at which the flowers now wither, and the capacity¡­ I hope he doesn''t make me fill the artifact fully. Because I am BUSY. ¡­ As Tristan said, it took her around half an hour to deliver the first package. Velvet would¡¯ve loved it if the place wasn¡¯t so damp, gloomy and humid, but it was what it was. And what it was was muddy. She had spent some time cleaning her boots before going back to the First Tower, lest Murrs got her ass for dirtying the pristine floors. Shoes were not something Velvet owned a lot of, since they were harder to fix than clothes, but lasted longer as long as she took care of them. And she took amazing care of them! Some mud wouldn¡¯t change that! Boots cleaned, delivery number one delivered, she went to Tristan¡¯s house, to pick delivery number two. Unlike mages who owned fully developed pocket dimensions, that¡¯s to say, mages within a powerful family, with an extensive list of members working and making money to maintain it, some mages lived on a public, shared pocket dimension. Which was like a small town, and, unlike the fully independent pocket dimensions, this one needed provisions to be brought from outside. Not that all houses were inside pocket dimensions. Like Velvet¡¯s, some of them were on the Mergifari. Some of those were the Centinel Towers surrounding the barrier that separated the Unnamed Forest from the Mergifari, while some others were in the inner, ¡®safe¡¯ part of the forest. Those were the cheapest options, and Velvet had seen some real amazing houses for rent, but, in case something happened to the barrier, the mages living there would be the security measures. Or, at least, the distraction for what it could come from inside. Not that something had to happen to the barrier, anyway. Back to the public pocket dimension, it was a bit cramped, compared to the other places on the Mergifari. Even more than the Market. Houses were stacked on top of each other, not like buildings, even when there were also some of those, but like boxes, with hanging bridges connecting the ones on top. According to Murrs, there were three public towns on the Mergifari, but one was empty for now. The two active ones were Garos and Laros, with Laros being the one Velvet was currently in. Tristan''s house was at the middle left, at the third floor of a red building. It had several security measures implemented, but Velvet had permission to enter¡­ at least until the entrance, where the two remaining artifacts waited. Tristan had closed the doors to the next room, so Velvet was unable to even peep a tiny little bit. And the woman had taken seriously the ¡°You will ONLY find the artifacts¡± line. ¡°At least she didn¡¯t take the walls with her¡­ or the floor.¡± Sighing, Velvet took the second artifact, this one being smaller, and box shaped. This one was for Elebra Galibi. ¡­ After finishing that delivery, which also took her a good half an hour, as the mage checked every nook and function of the artifact (not that Velvet was complaining, since at least, the Galibi pocket dimension was not muddy, just sandy), Velvet went back to Tristan¡¯s house. Only the last delivery remained, and, once that one was done, the incursion on the Traversa family would start. Alchor. Tristan hadn¡¯t given her a name, just told her that the mage wanted their identity hidden, same as the artifact that they needed. Oh well, Velvet respected that, picking the last artifact, and leaving again to speak to Murrs. She was used to doing this type of back and forth job, and Casrei had more terrain to walk, with cliffs and mountains, so going from pocket dimension to tower to pocket dimension wasn¡¯t that annoying in comparison. Now, incursions, on the other hand¡­ Velvet had some knowledge of sneaking in places to play pranks, but that probably didn¡¯t compare. Like, at all. Well, there was a first time for everything. Once Murrs gave her the okay, she went towards the ¡®last¡¯ pocket dimension of the day. Alchor¡¯s. The mage family that held the key to sneak on the Traversa¡¯s home. Chapter 127. Cheron Lost in her thoughts, and focused on the Traversa matter, Velvet climbed the stairway for the supposedly last time, a box in her hands. Weighless, odorless and silent. Whatever was inside was completely sealed, unless she forcefully opened it. She wasn¡¯t going to, but it was an existing option. ¡°Um.¡± Velvet suddenly said, stopping. The stairways that filled the First Tower were ¡®divided¡¯ on two sides. The inner part and the outer. Mages walked up by the outer zone, and down by the inner zone. That way, no one crossed someone else¡¯s path. Not annoying someone else was basic courtesy, after all. Since Velvet was going up, she was walking in the outer zone. That much was clear and obvious. Now, it seems it wasn¡¯t as clear and obvious for someone else. Namely, the mage that was right in her path, forcing her to stop and look up. White platform sandals, tied up to the mage¡¯s ankles by ribbons in X shape, reaching the knees, with nothing else except a simple, short white dress, tightened in some places by belts. Even the big, loose sleeves the girl wore were tied up by belts at the end. In her head, purple long hair tied up in two ponytails and big, round pink eyes. ¡°Hi!¡± The girl said, cheerfully. As she said those words, Velvet''s chest tightened, as she held herself back from jumping backwards, away from that girl. Until now, she had mostly interacted with young mages, too young to be a real threat, and most of them in a similar situation as her. And, of all of them, she¡¯d usually held the upper hand in "creepiness", due to her bloody Esca. Not that many teenage mages had more than five victims on their hands, after all. So, until now, she had never been on the other side, the side of those who confronted a bloody Esca. More intense than hers, more imposing and more scarier. Whoever that girl was, she was a murderer, a mage''s hunter, and more blood dripped down her hands than Velvet would see in her life. She didn''t know any previous information that made her reach such damning conclusions, but she didn''t need to, feeling it through her own Esca. That was the cross corruption. The primal fear mages felt when going against those who preyed on them. It took Velvet two seconds to recover her composure. Two seconds that the girl could¡¯ve used to kill her, even when she didn¡¯t. Probably because they were still in a public space, anyway. ¡°Hey.¡± Velvet ended up answering, refraining herself from adding ¡®You are kiiinda in my way¡¯. The girl nodded exaggeratedly. ¡°My name is Cheron!¡± Okay? A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡°Okay..?¡± When Cheron didn¡¯t respond, and just simply stared at her, Velvet sighed, her previous feelings of fear a bit subsided. ¡°Cheron¡­ what else?¡± ¡°Hmm? Something else?¡± Cheron seemed lost in thought, looking upwards and bobbing her body side to side. ¡°Does everything need an else?¡± ¡°Not everything, but names usually do. What if there¡¯s another Cheron, how will we know that-¡± ¡°Then I will eat her. That way, there will be no more other Cheron. No elses.¡± Now that¡¯s a way to solve problems. A very cost-efficient way, since you save money on food. Velvet thought, forcefully smiling at Cheron. ¡°I see.¡± Giving the strange meeting and conversation for finished, Velvet sidestepped to the left, as to continue her errand. As did Cheron, stopping her again. ¡°I think you are on the wrong side.¡± The girl said. ¡°This is for going down¡± ¡°I know.¡± So she moved to the right. As Cheron did, again. ¡°Are you copying me?¡± Velvet remembered those times when she did the same things to Nebura and Doireann. Did Cheron believe herself to be some kinda Karma deliverer? Probably not. ¡°Am I? I could be, yes!¡± ¡°Hope you are having fun, then.¡± Velvet said, before quickly jumping towards the left. Cheron imitated her, sidestepping, but now, before reaching the left side, Velvet turned, going right again, and crossing Cheron, gaining the high ground. ¡°Oh.¡± Cheron muttered, tumbling around, close to falling. Now, if Velvet didn¡¯t have such a horrid premonition, she would¡¯ve pushed the wobbling Sheron down the stairs, just for the laughs. But the part of her that screamed that she would lose her hand if she did so was pretty damn convincing. ¡°Not the best footwear to play pranks on a stairway.¡± Velvet mocked, referring to the platform sandals, almost a palm tall that Cheron wore. Eventually, Cheron recovered her footing, grabbing on the railings, or well, laying against them, since her hands were covered by sleeves and tied. She looked up at Velvet, her non reflective eyes betraying her cheerful tone. ¡°Oh, I thought you were going to that side, but then you went to this side! Hahaha!¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s a feint.¡± Velvet explained. ¡°A fent?¡± ¡°Feint.¡± ¡°Fint.¡± ¡°No. Ef-i-ai-en-ti.¡± ¡°F-e-i-n-t.¡± ¡°Yes, feint.¡± ¡°I see!¡± Cheron nodded. ¡°I didn''t know that was a thing until now!¡± She laughed, unnerving Velvet. ¡°I¡¯m learning so much from you, it''s great!¡± I already figured out you were following me from the stair dance, you didn¡¯t need to confirm it¡­ Velvet thought. That being said, if Cheron was showing up, it was probably because she couldn¡¯t enter the pocket dimensions, and was getting anxious when Velvet didn¡¯t instantly come out. Even so, do your job better! What kinda spy are you?! Just wait for a bit! Velvet screamed inwardly, criticizing Cheron. You are either stupid or overconfident, probably both! The overconfidence was deserved, though, since Velvet felt in danger every time Cheron moved, even if it was to not fall down the stairs. She almost understood Creftalia now. Almost. But, as dangerous as she was, an enemy you could see was miles better than the one you couldn¡¯t. ¡°Well, your learning will have to wait until I finish working.¡± Velvet said, stepping up the staircase. ¡°Oh. Wait.¡± Cheron said, attempting to go after her. So Velvet ran, not looking back until she reached the door, opened and entered, and, even then, she only allowed herself a small glimpse of Cheron¡¯s situation. She was still in the middle, left to eat dust. Strength and speed are two different things, and she seems pretty slow. Of course, it can be all an act, but¡­ she played way too perfectly someone tripping down the stairs. Velvet mused, closing the door behind her. Looking at the hand pressed against the door, she saw it trembling slightly. What a way to be spooked right before the actual spooky thing. She sighed, turning around and facing the penultimate pocket dimension. It was a closed room, with unpainted walls, and a small, box sized hole. By box sized, she means that the box she was holding fit perfectly. In a way, that hole was made for it. So she went towards it, and pushed the box inside. ¡°For Alchor.¡± She said, taking a step back once the box passed to the other side. ¡°You have 5 minutes to get ready for whatever Tristan asked you.¡± An ambiguous voice said from the hole, before it closed, replaced by a wall. So now it was Velvet and the door she came from, surrounded by unpainted walls. Clearing her throat, she started setting up the artifact. It looked like a dodecahedron with changing faces. Like a bigger brother of the rubik''s cube, but bronze in color, with sigils in some faces, strange letters in others and some others being plain. Velvet didn¡¯t need to do much. Once the artifact was set down, it started spinning on its own, searching for the back entry of the Traversa¡¯s pocket dimension. While it did that, Velvet readied herself, concealing her appearance and changing her clothes. A white suit, with white gloves, white shoes and a white, plain mask. For the hair, she modeled the spell to make a blonde bob cut that reached her shoulders. Lastly, for the hat, she put on a white bowling hat, with a bronze ribbon. Yes, she could¡¯ve just gone with the typical black cloak and face shrouded in shadows, but¡­ Where was the fun in that? Chapter 128. Starter Countdown Dressed, ready, and waiting for the artifact to be done, Velvet went over her stash of spells, materials, charms¡­ In the end, she had settled on using spells from the Pride and the Tyranny Paradigms, since she knew several mages pertaining to it, the spells they used and their behaviors. Also, they were complementary Paradigms, with Tyranny being the combination of Pride and Wrath, so a mage from one of them using spells from the other was normal. Not that they usually did it, since they were too prideful to employ an unideal Paradigm. Or, at least, Velvet hadn¡¯t seen Drifa, Igern, Ethra or Nebura doing it. Maybe because using another Paradigm would mean that their own wasn¡¯t perfect for them, and they could¡¯t allow that. Anyway, three minutes had already passed from the five that Alchor gave her to get out, and the artifact was still trying to pinpoint the pocket dimension entrance. And Velvet was starting to feel nervous, her fingers fidgeting with the sleeves of her suit. Tristan had told her that maybe her ¡°loophole¡± entrance was already found and closed, but, honestly, she had assumed that it would work. Hell, she had prepared as if it was gonna work. She had called for the Goddess of Darkness blessing for it. The artifact now failing would not only be a disappointment, but an absolute loss of time and resources. The sound of stone scraping against the wall opposite her, right at the fourth minute mark made her click her tongue. ¡°Come on, you useless thing¡­¡± She muttered. ¡°Say, how¡¯s Tristan doing?¡± A voice came from the wall, making her flinch. It was the same as before, Alchor¡¯s. ¡°Fine, I guess? Went to welcome the Pioneer Three¡¯s arrival.¡± ¡°So he managed to grow enough for them to buy his inventions? Good.¡± ¡°She.¡± Velvet corrected Alchor. ¡°Hm? Oh, I see. She found a flesh mage too? Good, good.¡± A flesh mage? Velvet paid attention to that. I need to contact one to see if they can heal Madam Dorna¡­ ¡°By the way, kid.¡± Alchor continued. ¡°That portal doesn¡¯t seem to be opening.¡± I can see that¡­ ¡°I still have half a minute.¡± ¡°Twenty seconds, in fact.¡± Refraining herself from groaning, Velvet looked almost anxiously at the artifact. Well, more than anxiously, accusatory. Then, when ten seconds remained, the artifact shuddered, its behavior changing and starting to turn its faces in a very¡­ determined way. ¡°Color me surprised.¡± Alchor said, a small tinge of shock in their anonymous voice. ¡°It worked.¡± Letting out a shaky but confident chuckle, Velvet clapped once. ¡°Of course, it¡¯s Tristan¡¯s work, after all. Have some hope!¡± The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. Alchor sighed, the hole in the wall progressively closing once again. ¡°How quick do kids grow¡­¡± ¡°Yes. That¡¯s what we call ¡®Childhood¡¯s End¡¯, haha.¡± Velvet said, looking at the now stabilizing portal. ¡°When kids learn what they will become, as they become unrecognizable for adults.¡± At least, I doubt Madam Dorna would recognize me now. She thought, right before entering the portal towards the Traversa¡¯s pocket dimension. ¡­ On the Mergifari¡¯s Harbor. Tristan turned her head from her pocket watch. Based on her calculations, the Pioneer Three was two minutes away from reaching and docking at the harbor, while Velvet should almost be done with Alchor. And, once she did that, the artifact would take around two minutes to work. Two minutes was the time limit. If it wasn¡¯t done in that time, then the artifact at the other side had already been found and destroyed. No ifs or buts. The chances were fifty-fifty, a coin toss that decided ten years of waiting, and from where Tristan¡¯s future advancement depended. If the artifact didn¡¯t work, she would have to give up on that information, as much as it bothered her. But she only made one gamble to get the entry. More than one, and the Traversa¡¯s would discover them and get extremely paranoid, increasing the security to extreme measures. So she had this only chance, which depended on the artifact and Velvet. She wasn¡¯t afraid of the artifact being found and modified to set up a trap, anyway. It was impossible to do, at least not without its other part, the one Velvet now held in her hands. And she had made more than sure that no one had the smallest access to it, with the tightest security systems she could think of, guaranteeing that. So, the idea of Velvet walking into a trap was impossible, for not to say stupid. The only way someone could hijack her devices was that they were, at minimum, all-seeing. And there was no mage, enchanter or sorcerer, blessed by gods or possessors of an Esca with that ability. None at all. An official mage approached her, his long and loud steps denoting a noble, holier than thou personality. Tristan side eyed him, making him stop. ¡°Where is Ceres?¡± The mage asked, when, obviously, he didn¡¯t find the guy in question. ¡°If you can¡¯t see him, then he isn¡¯t here.¡± Tristan answered, nonchalant. ¡°His presence was required today. We warned him with time.¡± Looking at the insignia at the mage¡¯s chest, Tristan guessed it was one of the representatives for the Snowbreak Project on the Mergifari. Not someone that could harm her job with them. ¡°Go search for him then.¡± The mage scoffed, turning around and walking to his companions. ¡°He is late.¡± He told them, exasperated. ¡°Of course the Disappointment of the Mergifari would disappoint.¡± After a few seconds, he sighed, pressing his temples. ¡°You and you, bring him here in less than two minutes.¡± The two nominated mages flinched, but did as told, disappearing in an instant. Tristan closed her eyes, humming slightly. Ceres had told her that he was going to play some poker with Siberiald Ropertti, so¡­ Those mages would need a lot of luck to find them. And some more to get out unscathed. She looked at the horizon, towards the sea. The Mergifari¡¯s Harbor, or, at least the one which was active when the other ones weren¡¯t, was outside the ¡°Market¡± zone that was open during the Selection. That zone was now completely closed off, under Udulluay¡¯s own petition, as it was all the time when the Selection wasn¡¯t on the way. What previously was a transcurred, silent, active and concealed market was now enshrouded in shadows, with nothing visible from where she was. Until the next Selection, all entry was prohibited, and no one knew what Udulluay did there. Even so, every three years, when Tristan went back during that time, she found everything exactly as she left it, so she wasn¡¯t exactly worried. The devil had been there before her, and will remain there after her. Speaking of the devil in question, it was also at the harbor, perched on a black staff, looking at the sea. Every now and then, he turned his head around completely, staring unblinking at some mage. Mage who then proceeded to stop whatever they were doing in panic. Knowing some of the things Ceres had taught the devilish bird, Tristan was sure some of the times he did that were on purpose. As she thought of that, Udulluay turned to look at her, and, if owls could grin, she was sure that he would be grinning. Then, he turned his head even more, looking behind her. Not turning around, Tristan waited until the steps behind her stopped. ¡°Did they get you in the end?¡± She asked Ceres. ¡°Guess.¡± She didn¡¯t see any of the two mages ¡®escorting¡¯ him, or rushing to tell the S.P. Representative that they found him, so the answer was probably not. Ceres came on his own. Not that Tristan was going to play the ¡®Guess¡¯ game thingy, choosing to keep staring at the sea instead. Ceres walked a few steps more, passing her and laying against the railings. It was strange, comparing Ceres to this place. An extremely common man, surrounded by the surrealist air that accompanied most mages. He didn¡¯t carry any artifacts, defensive or offensive, and neither did he wear magically enhanced clothes. He looked exactly like the kind of man one would find at a pub, or a casino, instead of a Mergifari resident. ¡°Look,¡± Ceres said, pointing at the sea. ¡°The ship is exactly on time. Not a single minute late.¡± Tristan looked at the zone he pointed. Indeed, between the thick fog, a silhouette was starting to appear, becoming clearer and clearer, starting by the bow¡¯s figurehead. A woman¡¯s head, wearing a raised warrior¡¯s helmet, with her hair siding over the hull, almost reaching the middle. An air of defiance and beauty emanated from the wood sculpture. The figurehead of the Pioneer Three. Chapter 129. Unsupervised knowledge After the statue, the rest of the ship appeared. Black in color, constructed with a mix of iron and wood, a mix of the most advanced technology and the most traditional and primitive magecraft. Past and present intertwined to give shape to the Pioneer Three, the Permafrost Caravel. One of the smallest ships that formed the Pioneer Fleet, but the one who had easier access entering and exiting Permafrost. As it got closer to the dock, and the mages grouped together in different teams, talking between them, Tristan caressed her hair behind her ear, activating an eavesdropping artifact. ¡°They sent a list with the perished mages¡­ Agrana Base¡­¡± She wasn¡¯t interested in that list, next. ¡°Mixing alchemy with artifacts is possible, I tried to¡­¡± She had done that already, next. ¡°According to all known laws of aviation, there is no way that a dragon should be able to fly. Its wings are too small to get its fat big body off the ground. The dragon, of course, flies anyway¡­¡± What even was that conversation? Was that Kartal? Next. ¡°Is the Director not coming?¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t seem so. Fixing the lost pocket dimension took a toll on her mind.¡± ¡°She just keeps getting worse¡­ At this point, her falling into corruption and becoming a witch will kill us faster than Permafrost.¡± One of the mages sighed. ¡°She has now become only a figure of power, not control¡­ All Mergifari¡¯s decisions now fall on Hasdrubal.¡± ¡°Not all, remember the Tarius¡¯ issue. Her son was the one that took the Devil¡¯s Book, and gave it to his selected.¡± ¡°A mother¡¯s preference, hm? Even so, if you want something, Hasdrubal will at least hear you out. He probably already knows what you want, haha.¡± ¡°Tch. I wanted temporary access to that Devil¡¯s Book, since my son was killed by him. But he doesn¡¯t allow any mage to get even a bit close to that girl.¡± ¡°I know that¡­ he even deployed her. The Hunger.¡± The two mages fell in an uncomfortable silence, while Tristan mused. She had felt some hazy blob following Velvet around, and she knew that Velvet was aware of someone stalking her. She hadn¡¯t done anything about that because, as someone who had known Ceres for a long time, Tristan was aware of how he liked to do things, which is to say, let people figure things out for themselves, or, as it was usually called: Fix your own problems. Tristan agreedeed with that statement. As a rather individualistic mage, she didn¡¯t like to baby and coddle novice mages, the reason why she was so strict with her requirements to pick a selected, to the point where she still didn¡¯t have any. That was against the Mergifari rules, since official mages needed to pick a selected to raise just to retain their rights to remain on the Mergifari. The only exception being mages that had raised more than twenty, all in different years, which basically amounted to the ones already ¡®retired¡¯, that lived closed off on their pocket dimensions. This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. But, as those mages just said, Ceres could call the shots simply by being her mother¡¯s son, and bend the rules as he wished. Yes, they were old, stinky privileges at play, the kind that gave more rights to the ones that knew the right people than to the ones that made the most effort, but, since they benefited her, Tristan wouldn¡¯t complain. Going back to Ceres, Hasdrubal and their tug-o-war, where no one was pulling, and instead waited for the rope to move on its own, Tristan didn¡¯t know what to think. Giving her the book that made her fall on the center of attention of all mages that had (or didn¡¯t had) something to do with the unsealed devil matter was like giving a hydrogen bomb to a baby. But, by doing that, they had put her on a stage, where, as an actor, she couldn''t be reached by the hands waiting offstage, at least while her show was on. But also where she felt enough pressure to push her to grow. Yes, at present, Velvet was growing faster by being on her own and taking her own decisions. But, but, growing on her own also meant growing unsupervised. She was growing without the pointers of a teacher, of a selector who guided her down the right path. An uncorrected growth could become dangerous, since no one could deduct what it would become. Maybe Ceres'' love for the casino is getting out of hand. Tristan sighed. But, once again, only the unpredictability of luck can defeat the certainty of fate. And, only luck can defeat absolute knowledge. ¡­ When Velvet came back to her senses; the artifact had been more rough when crossing portals than the Mergifari¡¯s doors, which made her dizzy for a few seconds, she found herself inside someone¡¯s bedroom. Almost unused, she noticed. While it looked clean on the surface, the lack of signs that someone slept there recently were noticeable. If she had to say a number, maybe it was three or four months since it was last used. And¡­ it wasn¡¯t what she expected from the room of a family of mechanics, to be honest. Maybe it was Tristan¡¯s fault for being so messy, that made Velvet expect the same from the other mages on her Paradigm, or maybe, Tristan had the average behavior as her Paradigm, but whoever the bedroom belonged to pertained to another Paradigm. Speaking of Tristan and the Traversa¡¯s Paradigm, the woman gave Velvet the name, with a short description. The Paradigm of Defiance, the one which went against the rules of nature itself. Machines and artifacts, and the ability to make them were what divided humans from animals and plants, after all. The users of this Paradigm didn¡¯t get any physical enhancement, but, if they got access to the materials necessary, they would never need to. Defiance, the combination of the Pride and Greed Paradigms. Pride for wanting to be above nature, and greed for wanting to keep going even after reaching the ceiling. ¡­ It really does describe Tristan. Velvet¡¯s smile twitched behind the mask. In the end, I was correct on the Pride part of her Paradigm. Leaving Tristan¡¯s matters aside, Velvet looked around the room. She couldn¡¯t touch anything, because anything she touched could become a clue later, when the Traversa¡¯s mages tried to track her. Even so, it was a reader¡¯s room, with several bookcases covering one wall, and also a sailor¡¯s room, or, at least, a sea fanatic. An astrolabe, an open map nailed to a wall showing the different seas and their routes, and a ship¡¯s model located in the middle of the room made that fact clear. Walking towards the door, Velvet glanced at the model. A black ship with aurore colored sails, and a helmed woman as figurehead. Written in small letters was the ship''s name: Pioneer Three. So this is the famous ship, hm? The one coming today? She asked herself. It looks so fancy compared to Viroa¡¯s¡­ Even the model has parts painted with gold! Laughing in silence, Velvet reached the door, stopping one last moment to look at a framed photo. On it, and with sepia colors, a girl wearing an oversized and pompous pirate hat was next to two other kids, one of them resembling very closely a younger version of Ceres, holding a camera and pointing it towards Velvet, which meant that the pic was taken against a mirror. And the other kid was probably Tristan, looking at the camera, the one Ceres was holding, not the one in the mirror, as if she wanted to dismantle it. Seeing the kid''s expression, Velvet had no doubts about the camera¡¯s fate. May it rest in peace. Leaving the room, she entered a corridor, which now, now, really felt like how an artisan family pocket dimension was supposed to look. Walls made by golden gears, slowly spinning and from where one could see the void behind, the ticking of the levers moving on their own, regulating the space. Floors made of white marble, but from where some of the tiles activated traps upon being stepped on. Tristan had warned her of the trigger mechanisms that would activate the security system when touched. Those changed every month or so, and she didn¡¯t have any way of knowing all of them. But Velvet didn¡¯t need to, since it was impossible for her to match a defiance mage on mechanism traps. And Tristan knew that, the reason why she gave her another thing. Extending her hand, sparkling dust started to converge upon it, forming first a ball, then a pyramid, a prism, a long shaped octahedron, then it folded over and over its own body, becoming once again a pyramid, never remaining in a singular shape, but always emitting a faint light, white in color. ¡°Two steps up, five left.¡± An inhuman voice spoke on Velvet¡¯s mind. Tarderebusque, Tristan¡¯s familiar. A defiance demon. Chapter 130. Fools Gold Tristan had given her a rundown of what she should expect in the pocket dimension, right before adding that her knowledge might be a bit outdated, so she should not have absolute trust on it. She put so much emphasis on the last part, that it ended up being the thing Velvet remembered best. Not like she forgot anything, since she remembered it all, but every time she thought about the traps and stuff, it was always followed by ¡°Do not fully trust¡±, in Tristan¡¯s voice, even when she tried to push the warning back. That being said, the most important thing Tristan had told her was that defiance mages always trusted their inventions more than they trusted other mages, so, instead of having affiliated mages going back and forth over the pocket dimension, they preferred to install traps and detectors. Of course, that didn¡¯t mean that it was impossible to cross someone else. Mages still lived here, after all. And yes, she mentioned that using Tristan¡¯s voice. Some mages prefer living on nocturnal hours, while some prefer the day shift, but I entered once the day ones were out already, and the night ones had already gone to sleep. Of course, that doesn¡¯t mean- Ah, enough! I know! Velvet shook her head, pushing Tristan¡¯s voice down again. She was still following Tarderebusque¡¯s instructions, zig-zagging over the hallways, walking deeper into the pocket dimension. The deeper she went, the less doors to bedrooms were, and the more fake hallways and traps were. Velvet almost fell on some of them, especially the ones with delusion spells. Fake hallways that called for her, telling her that everything she wanted could be obtained by going into them, and that they were the correct path. She had walked towards them, until Tarderebusque stopped and smacked her. And, by that, she meant slammed over her head, which, considering the demon had a variable number of corners, made its hits hurt quite a bit. But they stopped the hypnotic lure, saving Velvet, so she wasn¡¯t complaining. I didn¡¯t even realize I was being mind controlled¡­ She pondered. That¡¯s one of the differences between official mages and novice ones. They can kill you without you even noticing, or needing to be present. And the head of the Traversa family has two Escas, which is nothing compared to the Archmage that took Dianthus, or the Director. And then there¡¯s me, with only half Esca, and now without the Devil¡¯s Blood buff. The effects of the blood she drank from Frenese were over already. In the past, she had been able to confront both Doireann and Lox at the same time, with a bit of cheating, of course. But, if the same exact situation happened now¡­ Doireann was probably from the Selection previous to her, or maybe the one before it, and had a three quarter open Esca, while Lox was older, and at the peak of the not-fully-opened Esca group. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Velvet was aware that there was something mages needed to do upon reaching almost a full Esca for it to be wholly open, but she didn¡¯t know exactly what it was. Even so, deep down she knew that the answer was always close to her, within the voice of corruption, just at the tip of her fingers. A river she would cross when and if she reached it. Anyway, going back to Doireann and Lox, if that fight happened now, she would probably lose. Well, not exactly lose, since she still had several petitions of her deal with Frenese, and the Devil could defeat both of them in an instant, but doing so would make the fact that she had a deal with him public, which was detrimental. Luckily, Lox¡¯s stab wound was quite deep, so he would be out of commission for a while longer. The same couldn¡¯t be said about Doireann, who was already healed and free. I should ambush her when I have the time, it would be bad if she teams with Nebura to get revenge. She hadn¡¯t forgotten the half-Conceptualized spell that Doireann had, the Coronet Colosseum, which completely closed off a zone with three mages inside while making them fight an extremely unfair fight. Even when it was incomplete, and had a short duration, it was still an awful spell to fight under when one was on the weakened side. She didn¡¯t want to imagine what the ultimate and complete form of the spell, named Embodiment, was, even when only the head of her family, the Phorellas, could summon it. And, the reason she brought up the Concept-Structure-Embody thing that Tristan taught her was¡­ ¡°Huh.¡± She said, when Tarderebusque suddenly stopped, right in front of two immense iron doors. That was it, the deepest zone of the Traversa family¡¯s pocket dimension. The room that held a mage family''s biggest secret, the culmination of their lifetime¡¯s work. The room where the documents registering the research of the Traversa¡¯s Conceptualization, Structuralization and Embodiment of their Esca Overturn resided. The room behind an immense door, a door that could only be opened by the Traversa¡¯s family head. Not even a teleporting mage could enter while it was closed. Of course, Velvet thought, pulling out another of Tristan¡¯s artifacts, Opening and destroying something are different concepts. ¡­ Yesterday. ¡°Tristan¡­¡± She had asked, while they were discussing the incursion. ¡°You''re a Traversa, aren¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Indeed.¡± Velvet wasn¡¯t surprised. She was still a knowledge mage, always hoarding information, always keeping track of every single detail. ¡°Did you leave because they wouldn¡¯t teach you the full Embodiment spell? Or was it another factor?¡± She didn''t have high hopes of Tristan answering that, but trying was free. ¡°Oh, they only taught me the Conceptualization, but I left for another, simpler reason.¡± Tristan said, playing with the concealing artifact. ¡°I advanced faster without their meddling.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a kinda selfish reason to rob them¡­¡± She complained, even when she was still planning to do it. ¡°Velvet, any mage will put themselves first above all, including you. If you had something the Traversas wanted, they would try to take it from you by all means necessary, so don''t think too hard about it.¡± Tristan waved her hand. ¡°In mage¡¯s society, only the smartest ones advance.¡± ¡°I know that, after all, I got Frenense¡¯s Book, and with it, a stalker troupe as complementary, unasked for side dish.¡± Velvet said, rolling her eyes. Tristan grinned, letting out a short laugh. ¡°Hm, well, there¡¯s still someone who does the opposite, putting someone else before him. But¡­¡± ¡°Ceres is just the foolest of them all. Do not follow his steps.¡± ¡­ Velvet smiled, watching the doors slowly melt, and Tarderebusque floating inside, before taking a step back. Now the pretenses were all over. They had ten minutes before the family head showed up. There was only a silly, little problem remaining. ¡°You know?¡± She spoke to the air. ¡°It was nice, taking a stroll together. But¡­ you¡¯re too silent of a date.¡± Mages were selfish beings, always putting themselves first. ¡°Ah, guess I will apologize then. I''m usually much more talkative in romantic endeavors, I promise.¡± A voice said, followed by the sound of steps. Velvet slowly turned around, with her hands behind her back. ¡°That¡¯s not the best thing to say after spoiling a date, you know?¡± If you had something the Traversas wanted, they would try to take it from you by all means necessary. Tristan¡¯s voice sounded in her mind. That phase had another meaning. If someone inside the Traversa¡¯s family wanted something, betraying the family was always a possibility. This was the mage¡¯s world, where only the smartest prevailed. And, for someone whom the Traversa¡¯s Embodiment would never be replicable, due to the difference in Paradigms, the opportunity of peeking at the registers and documents and selling or trading them for an actual spell they could use was¡­ A golden opportunity only fools would ignore. ¡°Hello Harlan. Did no one tell you curiosity killed the cat?¡± Even when Velvet''s appearance was concealed, and she took care of acting differently, calling her chaser by name was a pleasure she wouldn¡¯t take from herself. ¡°Well, yes. But knowledge mages calculate risks, and¡­¡± Harlan Traversa, the knowledge mage that had sold Velvet the material bundle a few days ago, returned her gaze. ¡°This cat can take on someone with half an Esca.¡± Chapter 131. Tyrant Heros Bait Velvet smiled behind the mask. She wasn¡¯t afraid of the possibility that Harlan had discovered her identity, since she had taken precautions. The reveal of her level was due to him observing her, the traps she almost fell on and the paths she took. Knowledge mages didn¡¯t make deductions out of thin air (at least, not at their level), so everything they learned was based on the information they constantly recollected. That didn¡¯t mean they were never wrong. Velvet was the prime example of this, having been misled by both Cornelius and Siberina at first. In fact, the way they did it was the best to confuse knowledge mages. Giving them a set of incorrect but ¡®accidental¡¯ clues could distract them, as long as they didn¡¯t have any previous information about the subject. Harlan didn¡¯t know anything about the figure in front of him beforehand, and, as long as Velvet¡¯s identity remained concealed, that fact would remain. The biggest proof about that was Harlan¡¯s own words. He said Velvet¡¯s Esca level, but not her Paradigm, reinforcing her conjectures. In fact, if she had to add something, Harlan probably already crossed off some Paradigms depending on the traps she reacted to the most. So, as far as his knowledge went, he was sure that Velvet wasn¡¯t a delusion mage, nor a defiance one. On the other hand, Velvet had information about Harlan. Knowledge mage, not on Lox¡¯s level, maybe between Lox and Doireann, competitive, and preferred to use a combat role more than a support one, even when his Paradigm was the same as Velvet¡¯s. Due to him being part of a family of defiance mages, Harlan knew and used inventions from the Defiance Paradigm, one of them being the giant gear he used against Dianthus. Hm. Speaking of Dianthus¡­ She saw those light pillars he used to block the gear, even when Dianthus unsummoned them before she managed to touch the sigils and symbols on their surface, and so did Harlan. Hehe. She was so framing Dianthus for this. Not because of pettiness, really! It was all a calculated plan! Nothing was better to mislead a knowledge mage than fake clues that nudged at memories! And she had spent more time with Dianthus than Harlan, so she could show some of his behaviors and mannerisms in a half-hidden way, as if she was Dianthus pretending to be someone else, instead of the opposite. Of course, that plan had some holes, like the fact that Dianthus was immune to mind control, and thus unable to be affected by delusion traps, which didn¡¯t happen. But that was okay, her plan was to confuse, not fully deceive. As long as there was an inkling of doubt, a knowledge mage was unable to show their true potential. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Anyway, wasting time pondering was a knowledge mage speciality, which Velvet wasn¡¯t supposed to be right now. So, instead of answering Harlan¡¯s provocations, she attacked, summoning an ice spean rain. Frozen icicles quickly formed above her, lunging themselves against Harlan¡¯s location, some in a straight line, and some making an arch. The leading ones slammed against the ground, breaking into a million pieces, forming clouds of misty particles, blurring Harlan¡¯s sight. Harlan extended his hand, throwing five bird-shaped paper figurines in front of him, which flew towards the spears, colliding and exploding into scorching fire balls. Not waiting for the remaining spears to melt, Velvet readied for a follow-up attack, putting her palm looking up and motioning forward, summoning several ice stalagmites from the floor, which slid against Harlan. Immediately, she dashed perpendicularly to the side, forming one of Igern¡¯s spears on her hands. If she were to try and frame Dianthus, she would make it seem like Dianthus wanted to frame Igern, which also framed Arhontissian mages as a whole, due to their recent controversies. Arhontissia could take that loss, in Velvet¡¯s opinion. Even so, summoning Igern¡¯s spear was two other paper figurines down, plus the six used to make the ice spear rain and the ice stalagmites. Usually, she would only waste one paper figurine per spell copied, but those would be too weak and evident copies of the real thing, which would make Harlan suspect. Now, Velvet didn¡¯t know how to wield weapons, but she knew how to pretend to know how to wield a spear. A trick which wouldn¡¯t work against any combat mage, but, against a support one¡­ they wouldn¡¯t stop to try and find out the truth by clashing. And Harlan wasn¡¯t a special kind of knowledge mage; even when he used offensive spells, he jumped backwards and away from her, choosing to finally summon the giant gear to break down the stalagmites chasing him. Good. Velvet thought, grinning when the gear didn¡¯t stop moving, going back to Harlan, and instead got derailed, crashing against the half-melted door, staying there. Clumps of illusory geometrical shapes crawled over it, reminiscent of Tarderebusque¡¯s body. Using spells and artifacts from the Paradigm a mage didn¡¯t belong to allowed those same things to be hijacked by mages and other magical beings from the Paradigms it belonged to. That was why a mage needed to be informed about their opponents, or just reduce themselves to using spells from their own Paradigm, lest they found problems like this. Since knowledge mages were supposed to copy spells, they needed to be extra aware of that, even when mistakes could still be made, just as Velvet had done on several occasions. Speaking of Tarderebusque, the demon was steadily sending information inside Velvet¡¯s brain, based on what it was seeing inside the room; after all, the Defiance Paradigm didn¡¯t have the skill to record information that the Knowledge Paradigm had. That wasn¡¯t distracting per se, since Velvet had moved that data stream to where it didn¡¯t bother her combat and scheming thoughts, coupled to haven¡¯t checked it yet. Even so, it was a way of keeping tabs on the demon¡¯s progress. They didn¡¯t have infinite time, after all. After losing his gear, Harlan didn¡¯t seem surprised, still jumping away from Velvet, and reading another spell. This time, she didn¡¯t need any previous knowledge to identify the Paradigm it originated from. An ice golem. Harlan¡¯s way of testing if she was truly from the Tyranny Paradigm. The fake monster rose, its immense size almost reaching the ceiling, its body formed by ice blocks with sharp edges. It didn¡¯t have a head, the body ending on its broad shoulders, and neither had fingers, its hands ending on sharp icicles. The ice golem lunged at Velvet, throwing a punch as she raised her hands. Instantly, three light pillars with six sides each appeared between them, spinning and breaking the fake monster¡¯s arm. Do you know who isn¡¯t a tyranny mage? Me, and also, Dianthus. Now, the instant the pillars appeared, it was the moment. The way Harlan¡¯s eyes widened slightly, as he opened his mouth in a mute gasp. The moment all of the dots lined up and connected¡­ incorrectly. When his previous, but correct guess of a half Esca enemy fell down, replaced by a new, more formidable but fake enemy. Grinning behind the mask, Velvet didn¡¯t let go of that chance, summoning the chains given by the Goddess of Darkness. The chains enveloped Harlan before he noticed and could react, wrapping around him. ¡°Boom.¡± Said Velvet. Just that, instead of an explosion, what followed was a hard hitting ice spell to the head. Immediately, the golem disappeared, as his summoner lost consciousness. Velvet released the chains, after all, she wasn¡¯t going to kill Harlan, since there was no need to. Leaving him unconscious was the best choice. Hell, she might even bring him back with her to the safe zones when she went back, instead of dumping him here. Can I even put a mage inside a container¡­? She asked herself, turning around to check on Tarderebusque, who was almost done. The information it sent Velvet included a way to go up faster, which should make their return easier. Going back and going out, that was all that remained of her mission. Chapter 132. The best is for last Once the Pioneer Three was moored, the mages inside began to disembark, carrying heavy wooden boxes with them, which soon started piling up on the harbor. The boxes were black, completely sealed and with a faint mist emanating from them, even under the pressure of the sigils and seals covering their surface, which made their contents obvious. Those boxes carried Permafrost¡¯s ice. Yes, Velvet was right, most of the stuff brought from Permafrost was ice, but that was because ALL Permafrost was ice. What else could they bring? It didn¡¯t take a genius to deduce that! Was Tristan¡¯s opinion. To add information, Permafrost ice couldn¡¯t be stored inside magic containers, in fact, it couldn¡¯t be stored at all until several years ago, when they finally discovered a sealing formation that worked. They as he, since those boxes were discovered, invented and made by Hasdrubal, who was the first mage to receive a box. The reason was that, not only did the ice never melt under normal means, but it also kept expanding if left unchecked. Which was one of the reasons for most official mages to be present. Every mage that investigated the ice could only take a single box, which meant a lot of moving, and, if an accident occurred with the boxes, having most mages capable of dealing with it in the same place was a blessing, since all the ice had to be destroyed by magic to stop it from expanding. Also, when the boxes were taken by the mages to a different place, each mage got assigned a group to supervise and help if something happened during transport. Tristan wasn¡¯t one of the researcher mages, but those were only a single type of member. Another mage walked down the ship, looking around. Her clothes were those one would expect of a ship captain, with a long blue jacket made of leather, same as her hat, which had a white feather on it. Boots that reached up her knees, with white pants. Her hair was long, dark brow, tied up at the neck, and her eyes were blue, marking her origins as Charlampian. That woman was Fermidia Sarcos, captain of the Pioneer Three. Fermidia walked down, towards a group of noble mages, exchanging pleasantries. She did the same with several others, making sure to speak in order of most influential to less, lest any family could complain. When she was done, and almost half an hour had passed, Fermidia finally turned around, walking towards Tristan and Ceres. ¡°Saving the best for last.¡± Ceres said, grinning when Fermidia frowned at him. ¡°Don¡¯t say that, if they hear it I will have problems later.¡± She said, taking a rolled up paper from her jacket and giving it to Tristan. ¡°The list of artifacts that got broken and need replacement.¡± Tristan unrolled the paper, looking at the names and numbers. ¡°That¡¯s a lot¡­¡± She wasn¡¯t going to make them all, since there were more artificers on the Mergifari asides from her, but she got to pick the ones to make, at least. ¡°We had to replace everything on the Agrana Base, so we need to refill the next batch of replacements.¡± Fermidia explained. The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°How much time?¡± ¡°Three days until the Pioneer leaves again, but I will stay for a month. Thereus Tarius¡¯ crew will replace mine during then.¡± Traveling close to Permafrost took a toll on any mage¡¯s mind, so they circled between months to recover. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Tristan looked back at the list. She had already made and stored some of the artifacts on the list, exactly for this moment. She would pick the ones that matched, get paid, and work on whatever she wanted. That was what most artificers did, truth be told. She simply got to call dibs first. ¡°Oh, by the way,¡± She started, ¡°Ceres got a selected.¡± Even when she wasn¡¯t very expressive, a faint grin grew on Tristan¡¯s face at being the one giving the notice. Fermidia¡¯s mouth and eyes opened in surprise. ¡°No way! Is the world ending?¡± ¡°That¡¯s not something one of the big faces of the Permafrost thing should be saying.¡± Ceres intervened. For some reason, Udulluay had been sneakily moving towards them, and was now on Ceres¡¯ arm, which was resting on the railings. Ignoring that comment, just like Ceres was ignoring Udulluay, Fermidia continued, intrigued. ¡°And who was The One who managed to convince you?¡± ¡°Guess.¡± Ceres said. Fermidia turned to Tristan, to which she said. ¡°Don¡¯t look at me, it¡¯s not my place to answer that.¡± But you were the one who started it¡­ Clearly being mocked by both of them teaming up, she sighed. ¡°Oh, right, there¡¯s something for you this time.¡± Ceres looked at her, raising an eyebrow. ¡°I hope so, with so many mages demanding my presence.¡± ¡°Well, you should be here even without that, to welcome me.¡± ¡°I can welcome you at the bar.¡± ¡°I will be busy. This month is not a vacation.¡± She then grimaced. ¡°The Mergifari doesn¡¯t even have a bar.¡± Ceres didn¡¯t answer that. ¡°Anyway, when is that present for me coming out?¡± ¡°Oh, you know I¡¯m¡­¡± Fermidia imitated his voice. ¡°Saving the best for last.¡± ¡­ Ethra looked around expressionless, his mother, Adeline Graham next to him. Every now and then, some mage approached them, exchanged pleasantries and some small conversation with her mother (Ethra added comments every now and then, when he felt it was needed), before moving to another group. That act worked until a member of one of the family''s subsidiaries to the Graham¡¯s arrived, looking at Ethra up and down. At first Ethra didn¡¯t remember his identity, but that was before the mage opened his mouth. ¡°It¡¯s truly a shame what happened. Cornelius had so much potential¡­¡± Oh, it''s that asshole Leur. One of the Leur, since Leur was a family name, not an individual one, but Ethra had forgotten which one. ¡°Indeed.¡± Adeline said. ¡°Rest assured, that his murder will be repaid.¡± Leur gave a slight nod. ¡°I hope so, the Roppertis keep getting bolder with each passing day, and that¡­ Siberiald¡­ has no control over the ¡°children¡± he keeps popping out.¡± It¡¯s not that simple, you imbecile. Ethra groaned in his head. The Charlampian families are weaker than ever, and you want to provoke an inside war? No wonder you only take orders, not give them. ¡°I am aware.¡± His mother said. ¡°And I will have measures in place.¡± ¡°Good.¡± Then, Leur got closer. ¡°I have information that the Roppertis have started building connections with Mirel¡¯s Inquisitors.¡± ¡°What?¡± Escaped from Ethra¡¯s lips, before he managed to stop it. It wasn¡¯t a surprised sound, but an annoyed one. As annoyed as a Graham could sound, which wasn¡¯t much, really. ¡°It¡¯s not that strange. A family that deals with killing mages and the group that pursues their annihilation. The mutual interests are already on the table, it was only a matter of time. Maybe Mirel even plans to invade Charlampia.¡± You made up the last part just to push your agenda. Ethra realized, not considering Luer a very smart mage. ¡°Those kind of accusations should be brought to the Mergifari¡¯s High Command, not to me.¡± Adeline said, also realizing Luer¡¯s intentions and putting a stop to them. Of course, it wasn¡¯t all his fault, but the Graham¡¯s Paradigm''s own effects that made his mind unstable. The Pride Paradigm not only served to give orders and bend metal, but also to make lesser mages ¡®revere¡¯ them. As a family¡¯s head, Adeline possessed at least two opened Esca''s, which made weaker mages instinctively lower their heads, trying to please them. It also made people very prone to babble when trying to cheat them. One feared the consequences of lying to their ruler, after all. The sudden string of orders and shouts back at the Pioneer gave Luer the perfect reason to change conversation. ¡°Finally it''s coming out¡­¡± Ethra didn¡¯t want to give him the satisfaction of asking what that thing was, and Adeline was a patient woman, crossing her hands behind her back and waiting. From the ship, a completely covered thing was being taken out, around three meters in size. The cloth covering it was fixed by ropes wrapped tightly, showing a humanoid silhouette on top of an altar. Ignoring the two Graham''s prideful reactions, Luer continued, even when a slight sweat covered his neck. ¡°I think you two are already aware, but¡­¡± ¡°We found a statue of an unknown deity.¡± Chapter 133. Sailor web From the ship, four mages were taking out the covered statue. Like with the boxes, instead of using magic, they had to use their muscles. Being of unknown origin, no one knew for sure how the thing under wraps would react to magic. It wasn¡¯t a difficult task though, since the mages carrying it were from combat-focused Paradigms, able to lift it like a bag of grapes. Slow and steady, they took the statue to the harbor, lowering and laying it down on the side, away from the rest of mages and yet close to where Fermidia, Tristan and Ceres were. Fermidia walked towards them, turned around and motioned to the statue. ¡°This is what you need to check.¡± Getting away from the railings, Ceres clicked his tongue. ¡°Yeah, I see.¡± He then brushed off the four carrier mages. ¡°Don¡¯t drop it here, take it to some empty room in the Institute.¡± Unlike other mages, Ceres didn¡¯t have the obligation of teaching any class, so he never used the rooms there. But the statue couldn¡¯t be stored in any pocket dimension, and it couldn¡¯t be revealed in public, so the closest and ¡®safest¡¯ place was the building where classes were taught. Even when bothered by Ceres¡¯ lack of manners, the mages were aware how the Agrana Base had ended after just gazing up at the bare statue, having been present to see the aftermath, and not wanting a repeat of that. Of course, the mages of the Agrana Base had died by freezing, which wasn¡¯t exactly possible on the Mergifari, so, even if they saw the statue, at most they would keep praying towards it until the Director showed up, or hunger, thirst and time got to them. Even when the mages present were official ones, with more than a full Esca open, or family heads, with more than two, a physical proof of a god¡¯s existence was enough to break any barrier of mental or physical defense they could possess. So they obeyed, lifting the statue again. ¡°Take it to the third room on the second floor.¡± An aged voice said. Ceres didn¡¯t turn around to match Hasdrubal¡¯s gaze, as the old man slowly walked towards them, followed by another mage carrying one of the ice boxes. ¡°It¡¯s the closest vacant room.¡± Immediately, one of the carrier mages cleared their throat, bowing their head slightly towards Hasdrubal. ¡°Okay sir, thanks sir.¡± Before moving towards the Institute with the statue. Hasdrubal followed them with his eyes for a bit, until he finally turned to look at Tristan. It was just a simple glance, no longer than a second, and yet it managed to unnerve her. Is it because of me taking Velvet? Tristan didn¡¯t think that Hasdrubal would try to blackmail her. There weren''t that many knowledge mages that survived by selling private information, after all. If Hasdrubal had managed to live for hundreds of years, it was because he knew when to keep his mouth shut. So Tristan returned his gaze, even when it lasted less than a second, since Hasdrubal only looked at her in passing, his eyes meeting Fermidia¡¯s. ¡°Captain Sarcos, do you have a moment? I want to ask some questions about the Agrana Base.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± She said, pressing her right hand to her chest and bowing slightly. ¡°My memory isn¡¯t as perfect as some other marines, but, in case you need more details about anything, I can introduce you to all the record-keeping mages that were with me at the time.¡± If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°I¡¯d appreciate that.¡± ¡°And I will go to see where these guys dropped that thing.¡± Ceres said, stretching his back. ¡°See you around. And I mean Fermidia, not you.¡± He finished, waving his hand as he left. Hasdrubal didn¡¯t respond, even when one of his eyebrows twitched. ¡°I¡¯ll be staying on the Traversa¡¯s pocket dimension.¡± Fermidia said. ¡°When you are out of there, then.¡± Ceres answered, already some meters away. ¡°Speaking of the Traversa family¡­ the head left rather soon, am I wrong?¡± Hasdrubal caressed his beard, looking at Fermidia, even when Tristan was also close enough to listen. ¡°She said that there was a sudden mishap, and that she will be back shortly.¡± The Traversa¡¯s were one of the groups with whom Fermidia exchanged pleasantries at the start, even when those were cut short because of, well, ¡®sudden mishaps¡¯. ¡°I see.¡± Hasdrubal didn¡¯t press the issue, and Fermidia didn¡¯t elaborate, choosing to instead wait for those questions about the Agrana Base. Clearing her throat, Tristan interrupted. ¡°I¡¯m going to get my part of the list¡¯s artifacts. See you later.¡± Saying that, she also left, like most mages who were either carrying ice boxes back, were accompanying those, or were also artificers on a mission. Left alone with Hasdrubal, Fermidia signaled towards her crew. ¡°Shall we start with those questions?¡± ¡­ Back at the Institute, Ceres watched the covered statue in silence, sitting in a chair he dragged from another room, the room now empty except for him. For him and for Udulluay, who was standing on his head. Whenever that one Udulluay was the same as the one at the harbor, he wasn¡¯t exactly sure. Letting out a long sigh, he got up, slowly walking around the statue in circles. After two or so circles, each one slower than the last, he stopped. ¡°Where is it..?¡± He muttered, looking up and down the wrapped figure, and then side to side. He couldn¡¯t find it. He couldn¡¯t find the end of the damned rope! The sailors were afraid of using magic to touch the statue, using normal materials instead, but, BUT, they also tied up the thing as tight as they could, with a thick ass rope, with sailor knots. Damned sailor knots, he didn¡¯t know how to untie them! In fact, he still hadn¡¯t found the start of the end of the damned rop- Oh here it is. Ceres tugged at it, then at the surrounding ropes. Nope, nothing, nada. The knot was tied up with the combined fears of a thousand sailors or so, making it some cursed artifact devoid of magic but full of anxiety to not be undone. He was even sure that the rope was pulling away from him. It wasn¡¯t though, he just simply was unable to fight the sailor knots on equal ground. It was literally beating his ass. So, he went and picked Udulluay up, using one hand to hug him against his chest, like how kids did with cats, and the other to manipulate one of his claws. ¡°Udulluay is no makeshift knife.¡± The owl complained, even when he didn¡¯t exactly try to get free. ¡°Well, he is one for today.¡± Ceres said, dragging one of Udulluay¡¯s sharp claws against the rope, and repeating the motion until it snapped, letting some of the cloth move freely. Then he went to the other side of the statue, doing the same to what he decided were the ¡®weak¡¯ points of the whole sailor knotted web. Once it was done, and only when the statue was free of its binds did he release Knidulluay back on the chair, who started preening, probably a bit annoyed. ¡°Well,¡± Ceres said, grabbing the sheets covering the statue. ¡°Let¡¯s see with what we are working on here¡­¡± ¡­ Back at her office, Tristan started readying the artifacts. Ice drills, controlled, closed-space explosives, uncontrolled explosives, prosthetic hands, in case someone lost a finger or more to the cold, prosthetic legs, portable furnaces¡­ She looked at the mechanical suit she was working on. It still wasn¡¯t ready, and, even if it was, it still had to be: approved by the upper representatives of the SP, tested on the Mergifari, tested on Permafrost, accepted to be distributed and manufactured in bigger quantities¡­ Money wasn¡¯t an issue, the big shots couldn¡¯t afford to have a tight purse when the world was in freezing danger, but, with the other points still existing, Tristan knew that the mech suit wouldn¡¯t be ready for this month. Well, it didn¡¯t matter. With the funds won by delivering this batch of artifacts, she could buy all the necessary materials she lacked. It was just a matter of ti- With a thud, Tristan slammed her free hand against the desk, a bead of sweat traveling down her neck. Her breath accelerated for a moment, as she felt something suddenly pushed in her brain, connecting to it. She closed her eyes, poking it with a thought. The answer was familiar, and that was what made her freeze. Tarderebusque, her demon familiar, had returned to her. And that should have been impossible. Nor was the demon able to teleport, nor was Velvet capable of teleporting it. Hell, not even a damn archmage could locate a demon inside a pocket dimension, tear it from its physical location, and return it to its owner, without the owner even realizing what was happening until it was done. And yet, Tarderebusque was back, with no traces of Velvet. Chapter 134. Unfilling landscape Velvet rolled slowly over the ground, wincing in pain. Well, not in pain. Actually, she wasn¡¯t hurt, just confused. But the confusion was so big that it mentally harmed her, like waking up without knowing where, when, how or what. As if she was a fish in the sea that got put in a cup and dumped on the opposite side of the world¡¯s sea. Yes, she was still a fish in the sea, but with no idea about what happened. The water was still salty and still cold, and yet, unrecognizable. And there was sand. Not metaphorically speaking, but that she was laying on top of sand, on a beach, if the sound of waves was something to go by. She had no idea of how she ended up here. Last thing she remembered was traveling back the Traversa¡¯s pocket dimension, carrying Harlan with her. Then, as if someone had covered her with a cloth, everything went dark, and then, sandy. Harlan was gone, and so was Tarderebusque, since Velvet couldn¡¯t sense the demon anymore. She sensed Hyde and Frenese, though, but the telepathically connection she had with each of them had been blocked. Well, not exactly blocked, since she didn¡¯t feel any obstacle in her mind. No, instead, she could ¡®see¡¯ the mind connection, but every time she tried to touch it, it avoided her grasp. So, more than being blocked, it was concealed. Whoever had brought her here was able to conceal not only her familiars, but her Esca too. Velvet couldn¡¯t access the Primeval Sea water through her Esca anymore, and, once again, the link wasn¡¯t broken or blocked. She still felt it, but was unable to grasp it. The passive skill of the Knowledge Paradigm, the perfect memory, was still active, but she didn¡¯t know if it was because whoever brought her here couldn¡¯t conceal it, or because they didn¡¯t want to. Taking into account all that mage had done, Velvet kinda leaned on the last option. And, since she had been laying on the ground unbothered all this time, whoever they were, weren¡¯t in a rush to kill or interrogate her. So, she should stop playing dead and get up. And shake the sand in her face off. Slowly, she rolled over the ground until being face down, before using her hands to push herself away from the ground. Some sand had gotten into her mouth and hair, so she raised one hand to wipe her face. When her fingers pressed against the sand grains, those disappeared, leaving no trace behind. Nor smoke nor particles, nothing. What¡­ She asked herself, repeating the motion. Once again, the sand disappeared. Velvet then put some sand in her mouth, tasting it. It has no flavor, not when it''s sand, and not when it melts. Still, it''s different from illusions of the Delusion Paradigm, since the sand on the ground does feel solid¡­ Of course, sand is very small to be used as a test¡­ Looking around, Velvet saw a coconut tree. The tree was straight, making it impossible for her to reach the coconuts, but it didn¡¯t matter. Velvet went towards it, scraped a piece of its bark and munched on it. If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. Like the sand, the bark disappeared, leaving no taste behind. As any scientist conducting an investigation, Velvet first tried to eat different parts of the landscape, before confirming certain conclusions. One, she was in a pocket dimension. Looking at the horizon, she could see some symbols and sigils making a formation over the sky, shaped like a half sphere. With the furthest zone of the sea being fake, she guessed the pocket dimension¡¯s size. It was little, not even one kilometer radius, and some of that size was water, making the island even smaller. Also, like everything else, the sea water wasn¡¯t salty, but tasteless. Two, everything she broke and ate remained broken and eaten, which erased the possibility of it being an illusion. Illusion spells recovered their original shape when left alone for a while, as long as the charm, sigil or formation keeping it up was unharmed. Since Velvet hadn¡¯t touched or seen any of those options, the fact that the sand remained gone was a big clue. She could probably break the island on her own, but, with her Esca concealed, Velvet had the stamina and strength of an eighteen year old with no military or combat training. She would probably die of thirst and hunger before breaking even the ten percent of the island. Knowing that, what options remained for the landscape to be made of? Well, there was one possibility, but it was such¡­ a wasteful option¡­ the kind only available for the mages that had a lot of power and could afford to throw it away. Because if that was the correct choice, this whole island, no, this whole pocket dimension was made with raw magic piled up. If it sounded ridiculous, it''s because it was. Magic didn¡¯t have a physical presence, it couldn¡¯t be stored in a bottle or eaten. Even miasma, which was like the residual waste of magic, was hard to store and examine (even when it was useless, since miasma had no use whatsoever). The most useful way to make magic ¡®physical¡¯ was sigils, formations, artifacts, staffs, charms¡­ all of them having one thing in common. They were material objects, already existing, where magic made a path in a certain pattern to cause a predetermined reaction, but all of them needed to be supplied magic (staffs, artifacts, sigils), or had a short time to be used before weakening and becoming useless (charms). So, for a mage to be able to make a whole island from scratch, it would be like piling up dust, if dust was ten times smaller, and if making that dust corrupted your whole existence. In comparison, Velvet wouldn¡¯t be able to make a single, inedible coconut by piling all her magic. And that was implying that she knew how to shape raw magic, which she didn¡¯t. So I really have no other choice than to walk and see if I can meet whoever lives here. With a newfound determination, due to having no other options, Velvet started walking towards the other side of the island. It wasn¡¯t that far away, but the island had a perpendicular shape, its height increasing the more Velvet advanced. Even so, it wasn¡¯t that much of a difference, and it couldn¡¯t be called a mountain at all. That being said, it was kind of a dick move for whoever brought her here to drop her on the furthest side possible from her goal. Maybe it was because they wanted Velvet to be awake and aware before meeting her, and not having to waste time by explaining stuff. Or maybe it was simply a dick move. It could be anything, really. Something about the island was that it had ¡®life¡¯. Velvet could hear birds singing, even when she was unable to catch one and see if they were real. Of course, since the island had no edible food and water, the birds probably were fake too. I would blast one of them if I had magic¡­ oh well. Not that much time had passed when her walk came to an end, the sand under her steps disappearing, giving place to a marble stairway. A stairway that didn¡¯t take her to a house or any kind of building. No, the stairway ended in an open altar, decorated by marble pillars on each side. Velvet climbed slowly, looking to the sides, just in case something happened, even when the space around the altar was clear, showing a magnificent view of the whole pocket dimension. A small paradise built upon lies, where nothing was real. Well, not everything was fake. One thing was real, the being in front of her, on top of the altar. There, it was¡­ Velvet looked at it for an instant, before quickly averting her gaze. Something that should have been a human with long, black hair, but was no longer one. A neck too long, a body too big for its head, legs bent up in places where they shouldn¡¯t bend, the long, filament-like cloth it wore making little to hide the shapes that were under. Only half her face remained, the other half warped beyond comprehension, to the point where one of its empty eyes went upwards. Even so, when it ¡®looked¡¯ at Velvet, she could assure that it was seeing her, from the inside to the outside. ¡°Hello.¡± Velvet said, folding her arms behind her back, a tense smile adorning her face. ¡°Hope I didn¡¯t make you wait too long.¡± ¡°Not at all.¡± The being said, a voice too human, too clear in comparison to its body. ¡°You arrived at the exact moment you were supposed to.¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m glad that¡¯s the case!¡± Moving a hand to her chest, Velvet made a slight bow. ¡°Ah, even when you probably know who I am already, I would like to introduce myself. Velvet Consestella Dobastro, present.¡± What she didn¡¯t say, but implied with her words was: So, WHO might you be? The being smiled, almost making Velvet flinch. ¡°Carion is my name, but for you and everyone else, I am the Prophet.¡± The one that sees the future, the one that knows the ending. Velvet finished the sentence. Chapter 135. Fates Corruption Both of them fell silent after that, Velvet lost in her pondering and the Prophet, who started, well, continued knitting something. ¡®Knitting¡¯ as a loose praise. It was making an atrocious job of it, and the resulting cloth was full of knots and clumps, so ugly that it made Velvet¡¯s eyebrows twitch. It resembled a shirt, though. ¡°Are you cold?¡± She asked. Maybe the Prophet was making a shirt because it was dawn already? It had been dawn for a while, but nothing guaranteed that night wouldn¡¯t fall. The Prophet raised its head and looked at her, laughing softly. ¡°Not at all. I¡¯m knitting fate.¡± Is fate that ugly to watch? She thought, folding her knees to sit in front of the Prophet, watching it work. They stood like that for a while, in silence. Velvet paid all her attention to the threads movements, eventually finding some sort of ¡®sense¡¯ between them. Some parts were being knitted quite nicely, while some were done more erratic. But, these ¡®errors¡¯ had some sense on their location. ¡°What do these clumps represent?¡± She asked. ¡°The corruption of fate, the things I cannot see.¡± It wasn¡¯t the first time Velvet had heard about the corruption of fate. Lothrigern had also mentioned it, but, alas, it wasn¡¯t like He explained himself afterwards. Velvet had the feeling that He didn¡¯t exactly like speaking to humans, or well, her, but, since Lothrigern was known for being a danger to call, the problem didn¡¯t lay on Velvet, but humans as a whole. In fact, she had bragging rights, that she couldn¡¯t brag about to anyone, of not having been killed by meeting Lothrigern. ¡°What is the corruption of fate?¡± Maybe she would have more luck with the Prophet, than with the Deriliam. Her hopes were answered when the Prophet opened its mouth. ¡°It¡¯s not a what, but a who.¡± And then, quickly destroyed. ¡°A who which I can¡¯t see, whenever is the past, the present or the future.¡± ¡°So there¡¯s nothing you can tell me?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t say that. Even when you can¡¯t see someone, you can see the aftermath of their actions, and how those changed what was fated to happen.¡± The Prophet sighed. ¡°When the dead don¡¯t die, and the living do, what I saw and what I will see differ quite a bit, you see?¡± She did see, and by that, she meant understand, but disagree. As a human, Velvet didn¡¯t like the idea of having a predestined fate. Not many humans did, to the exception of the ones who wanted something to blame when things went wrong and something to praise when they went good. Asides from those, most of them believed in their own skills and decisions, and in their future being shaped by those. And, even if fate existed, everyone believed themselves to be the exception, the one capable of changing the end. So, the idea of fate becoming corrupted, sounded akin to free choic- The Prophet laughed, as if mocking Velvet¡¯s thoughts. ¡°It¡¯s not a good thing. It¡¯s called the corruption of fate for a reason, not the liberator of fate, or the chainbreaker of destiny.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because if fate¡¯s goal is to save the world, then the corruption¡¯s goal is to cause the biggest amount of destruction.¡± Velvet frowned, her barely positive outlook crushed. ¡°And what makes you say that?¡± Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. ¡°Because it¡¯s what I¡¯ve seen. Everytime it moves, I see the world burn¡­¡± The Prophet looked up, before looking again at Velvet, tilting its head. ¡°No, that¡¯s not correct. What I should say is, I see the world melting.¡± Velvet fell silent at that. Was the Prophet referring to the Chained M- ¡°Yes, I am.¡± ¡°How do you-¡± ¡°I can read your mind.¡± Well stop. ¡°It¡¯s not that sim-¡± ¡°And stop interrupting me too.¡± Both of them stared at each other again in silence, each one taunting the other to be the one that broke down the stalemate. Even the Prophet had stopped knitting by now, maintaining the staredown. ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ ¡°I know how our whole conversation will play out.¡± The Prophet said, breaking the stalemate with a sigh. ¡°So for-gi-ve-me for trying to rush things.¡± That was the fakest apology Velvet had ever heard, but she couldn¡¯t exactly blame the Prophet. Knowing the future should make the present pretty boring, as if re-reading a book while being unable to skip the boring parts. That would make speaking with me one of the boring parts¡­ Velvet thought, the corners of her mouth twitching. At least the Prophet had the decency of going back to knitting instead of answering those assumptions. ¡°So, this corruption of fate¡­¡± Velvet went back to the important matter. ¡°If it can cause changes, it needs a physical form or something similar, no?¡± ¡°It¡¯s akin to a parasite.¡± The Prophet nodded. Velvet thought for a bit, before asking. ¡°It''s on Dianthus?¡± The Prophet didn¡¯t answer, but its smile was all the confirmation she needed. It made sense, after all. If the corruption of fate needed someone that couldn¡¯t be sealed due to dooming the world with them, then the half-immortal, destiny¡¯s child Chosen One would be the best target. Also, she hadn¡¯t forgotten what happened during their confrontation against Frenese. Dianthus had told her that he had seen what would happen, and that he wanted to change how it ended. In fact, if one were to believe him, they did change how it ended. Dianthus wasn¡¯t the Prophet, but the Chosen One. If he could make prophecies, the one about his own fate wouldn''t be incomplete, just like she had been told. So, the fact that Dianthus had a way to know the future supported her deduction of him being related to fate¡¯s corruption. A guess pretty much confirmed by the Prophet. ¡°Was he also kidnapped by you?¡± Velvet asked after a moment. ¡°No.¡± The Prophet said, making Velvet grimace. So, knowing who the corruption of fate inhabited was good, but the thing was¡­ Dianthus was technically lost. ¡°Do you know where he is?¡± ¡°I told you already, I can¡¯t see him.¡± The Prophet waited until Velvet clicked her tongue, before adding. ¡°But I know who has him.¡± Why did you pause then? Weren¡¯t you the one that wanted to rush things? Dianthus can be annoying, but you are so too! Does being picked by fate make you annoying? Is that it? Now, was Dianthus annoying because he had a fate corrupting parasite, or was he annoying and also had a fate corrupting parasite? Maybe the parasite was annoying too. The Prophet waved its deformed body side to side, clearly having fun at her cost, but it was also keeping its empty eyes on her, as if waiting for Velvet to reach some conclusion on her own. So Velvet obliged, monologuing. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t have brought me here just for a chat, so you probably want me to go get his ass, no?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Well no. Unless you have some amazing cheat that I can use to defeat an archmage, that I get to keep after doing so. Or will you offer an ¡®absolute path to victory, prophecy approved¡¯?¡± ¡°Oh, no. You could never defeat him. Any sort of confrontation between you two ends up with your death.¡± ¡°Thanks for your honesty.¡± ¡°I can tell you all the ways you die.¡± ¡°You can also not.¡± The Prophet did the thing again where it shut up, waiting for Velvet to keep going while staring at her with its twisted, empty eyes. ¡°What is the archmage¡¯s goal?¡± ¡°To clean the Chosen One from fate¡¯s corruption,¡± This time, it didn¡¯t wait for Velvet to ask. ¡°But, by doing so, he¡¯s also erasing his original fate, and the reason why he exists.¡± ¡°He believes in the indomitable spirit of humanity, and their possibilities of defeating Permafrost without relying on fate. As much as I would love to support that idea, this time hope won¡¯t save anyone. Humanity doesn¡¯t have the time to develop a solution.¡± ¡°But alas, old people are very stubborn, even more so when they are mages. All that miasma that passed through his head all these centuries damaged his brain. Of course, all mages are kinda coo-coo in the head though.¡± ¡°Oi.¡± ¡°You agree, so cry about it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s your neck so long so it''s easier to strangle?¡± ¡°I know you won¡¯t do it.¡± Velvet took a deep sigh, before asking. ¡°Can¡¯t there be a replacement?¡± ¡°Yes, but that new Chosen One would have to be born and then grow. If we waste another twenty years, then we would lose it all to Permafrost.¡± ¡°That¡¯s too much of a coincidence, isn¡¯t it?¡± The Prophet couldn¡¯t completely get rid of Dianthus, who was the cradle of one problem and the solution to another. ¡°Of course, it was all planned by the corruption of fate. If we get rid of it completely, we lose completely.¡± ¡°Does Dianthus know?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. Feel free to ask him. Chosen Ones are kinda simple, with or without corruption.¡± The Prophet was again implying sending Velvet to the Archmage. It wasn¡¯t like she didn¡¯t know how little of a choice she had, since well, for starters, she didn¡¯t know how to get out of this island. But she wanted to get something out from doing it. Chapter 136. Silver heart hole Velvet stretched a bit, extending her hands and snatching the knitting needles from the Prophet, who in turn waved its now empty hands around, grasping at the empty air a few times before stopping. She wanted to ask at first why wait until Dianthus got kidnapped to save him, instead of preventing it, but the Prophet itself had already given enough clues to know the answer. It didn¡¯t see Dianthus getting kidnapped, but then it saw the aftermath of the kidnapping, when Dianthus lost both his destiny as the Chosen One and the fate¡¯s corruption. Which didn¡¯t make sense. ¡°If you know many things of the past fate corruption¡¯s actions, by seeing the consequences of its surroundings¡­ that means that just the existence of fate¡¯s corruption makes you unable to see Dianthus in the past, present and future.¡± ¡°You shouldn¡¯t be able to see the paths where he comes out still carrying the fate¡¯s corruption, only the ones where he loses. And yet, something happens in those that makes you believe I can influence them.¡± ¡°I know my abilities better than anyone, same as my limits. I can¡¯t defeat an Archmage, the same way I cannot defeat Dianthus. You can also say I can¡¯t defeat fate.¡± ¡°What I am is a timebomb connected to something deep below.¡± Velvet lifted the cloth, putting it between her and the Prophet, staring at the latter through the holes. ¡°And I¡¯m getting the feeling that your plan is to send me there just to blow myself up.¡± ¡°The problem you want to solve is Permafrost. Me and the Chained Man are something else. Something else that you might want to solve while you are at it.¡± The Prophet stared at her in silence, its face slowly curling into a smile. ¡°You want a guarantee of safety.¡± It wasn¡¯t a question. ¡°Clever.¡± Velvet said. ¡°Did you get that from my mind, or made your own conclusions?¡± ¡°Guess. But I can guarantee that I won¡¯t backstab you.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not what I want. I want six months of absolute protection on the Mergifari, starting from the moment I leave the Archmage¡¯s pocket dimension.¡± ¡°Assuming you leave it.¡± ¡°Wanna bet?¡± ¡°Would you bet against a Prophet?¡± ¡°A Prophet? No. A blind Prophet? Yes.¡± Now it was Velvet¡¯s turn to grin. ¡°You can¡¯t see what will happen there, am I wrong? You only see the aftermaths of the doomed routes, the ones where Dianthus lost his fate. So, for you to send me, there can only be one reason¡­¡± ¡°You can¡¯t see that future. Not until it becomes the past and the aftermath arrives.¡± ¡°And yet, I can see everything until the moment you enter. Like this whole conversation.¡± ¡°Then you will know what I will say.¡± If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°For us to make a deal, so that I can¡¯t go back on my promise. But, since we are not demons, we can¡¯t use the name of the Father of Hell. Therefore, you will suggest using the Father of Fairies.¡± ¡°And then?¡± ¡°I will refuse, and instead we will use the Father of the Forge¡¯s True Name. A completely neutral party.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± It wasn¡¯t bad, still a Deriliam, so it wasn¡¯t like she could complain. She was simply more familiar with Lothrigern, but she knew that the forge Deriliam was the one that Paramus Traversa taught her, Baetylus. Maybe that was why the Prophet suggested that one, aware that Velvet would refuse any unknown Deriliam. ¡°Good.¡± ¡­ Unlike the time she made the deal with Frenese, this time it was faster, only taking ten minutes. Probably because the Prophet already knew how the deal¡¯s terms would go, so it skipped the negotiation, to Velvet¡¯s dismay. She liked doing the back and forth thing, but doing it to someone who already knew what she would say, think and do was a loss of time. Even so, she still reviewed the contract, searching for any clause that the Prophet could¡¯ve slid underhandedly. She didn¡¯t find any, which probably was because the Prophet had already foreseen her rereading the deal. What a pain. In fact, the Deal was quite simple. If Velvet managed to get Dianthus out, with him still being the Chosen One, she would have six months of guaranteed protection. Protection guaranteed by the Mergifari¡¯s Director herself. Velvet had already deduced that the island was made by an extremely powerful mage. She suspected another Archmage, but when the Prophet revealed that mage being the Director herself, everything clicked. A mage capable of breaking space itself, to drag her from a pocket dimension to another in an instant, concealing her Esca, links with familiars, and making an island from scratch. Something that would be impossible for almost every mage. It was impossible, actually. If she were to do it alone. The Prophet did help the Director to pinpoint her exact location, and also was the reason for Tristan¡¯s artifact to connect to the Traversa¡¯s pocket dimension. A proof of goodwill, that¡¯s what the Prophet called it. Bullshit, she thought, since Velvet knew it was so that Charon or anyone didn¡¯t see her getting yoinked. Unlike the pocket dimensions that Velvet visited to deliver Tristan¡¯s artifacts, the Traversa¡¯s pocket dimension was the only one where she wasn¡¯t being watched by another mage. Both of them knew that the other also knew, so the Prophet was just being condescending on purpose. She really suspected that the ¡®beings related to fate are annoying about it¡¯ theory was more of a fact than a theory. Back to the deal, the Prophet only wanted a Chosen One Dianthus, and made no mention of bringing back the fate¡¯s corruption inside him. But, since sending Velvet made it unable to see the consequences, it might be unavoidable. Wordlessly, Velvet extended her hand, motioning to start sealing the deal. ¡°I, Carion, offer this deal under Baetylus.¡± Different from the time when she said Andras'' name, this time Velvet felt a heavy weight pressing her down, as if she was having a mountain dropped on top of her. Her body started to feel rigid, and a silvery, metallic glint grew from her skin, appearing in some spots before moving to others. If she had to compare it to something, it was like the petrification spell monsters like the gorgons inflicted upon being looked at, but with silver instead of stone. ¡°I, Velvet, accept this deal under Baetylus.¡± The instant she finished speaking, confirming the deal, all the silver spots crawled towards her chest, sinking into her heart, a stabbing, piercing pain shooting through her body. Like a silver dagger crossing her soul, the deal had been sealed. ¡­ After several minutes Velvet took a last deep breath, the painful, stabbing feeling receding and progressively becoming bearable. She didn¡¯t stop feeling the stab, the metaphorical weapon lodged inside her heart, but it eventually stopped hurting, unless she focused on it. As long as she ignored its existence, she wouldn¡¯t feel it. ¡°The Deal has been sealed. Now, tell me about the aftermaths of the doomed futures.¡± The Prophet breathed profusely, its position slightly hunched, more sensible to pain than Velvet. Well, it looked fragile, and knowing the approaching pain beforehand didn¡¯t make it hurt less. ¡°The Archmage never comes out.¡± It said, after a whole minute of ragged breathing. ¡°He always dies inside, and Dianthus comes out.¡± A Dianthus no longer being the Chosen One. That¡¯s to say, a mortal Dianthus. If what the Prophet said was the truth, that meant that, between the time when Dianthus got kidnapped and he lost his fate, something killed the Archmage. The biggest possibility was Dianthus himself. Even when the one in Velvet¡¯s dream was sleeping peacefully, Dianthus was still a very strong, unfaltering, immortal mage that never ran out of magic or stamina, nor accumulated miasma, something most other mages had to worry about. So, even if he ended up losing, it didn¡¯t mean that he went down without fighting. He had managed to hold Frenese back while Velvet sealed the book. She didn''t know if he did so by becoming a glorified chew toy for the Devil, or if they actually fought. Maybe Frenese had the answer. Not that she could ask him now, concealed as he was. Chapter 137. Ashen Arbiter The Prophet looked at her, before refusing with its head. ¡°Nothing I can do about that. This space conceals anything that could harm me.¡± ¡°What if I tried to kill you with blunt force?¡± ¡°Why would you even¡­¡± Aware that it was just curiosity from Velvet¡¯s side, and not a threat, the Prophet just laughed softly. ¡°We have the same strength¡­ I could take you on a brawl.¡± Only because you can see the future! ¡°But if you mean someone stronger, then they wouldn¡¯t be allowed here, unless I could see that they wouldn¡¯t try to attack me. This IS the safest place in the whole world, after all.¡± Velvet hummed, agreeing. The Prophet was probably the only being aside from the Chosen One that could cause wars over its ownership. She didn¡¯t have time to see how Arhontissa dealt with Dianthus¡¯ kidnapping, but it was an increasing political problem. One that she would never be part of, since the parties involved were big, powerful mages from the continents, and not random novice mages. The random novice mages probably would suffer the consequences, though. ¡°So, are we assuming that the Archmage is dead at present, or do you have something that would prevent him from burning me to a crisp the moment I show up?¡± ¡°He is currently alive, that¡¯s for sure. And I don¡¯t know what you are expecting- well, I do, hehe. But he¡¯s not going to kill you the instant you enter his place. He¡¯s old and a bit coo-coo, but the more powerful a mage is, the less things they consider as threats.¡± ¡°And you¡¯re not exactly threatening. Not to an official mage, less to an Archmage.¡± ¡°Why, thanks.¡± Velvet answered the compliment with a very nice, fake smile. ¡°What about family or companions? It¡¯s only him and Dianthus there?¡± ¡°Only them. He has raised a lot of novice mages through the years, but none of them were allowed to remain with him.¡± ¡°Paradigm?¡± The Prophet fell silent, smiling subtly and picking the threading needles that Velvet had let down on the floor. ¡°Retribution.¡± ¡°Name and title?¡± Now the Prophet started fidgeting with the needles, looking anywhere but at Velvet, which¡­ started worrying her. ¡°Eiren Cardomos, the Ashen Arbiter.¡± Velvet fell silent at that. She knew that name. Not the title, but the name. It had been told to her by Viroa, when the old sailor got drunk enough to share some of her past on the open sea. It had also been told by Madam Dorna, when the kids convinced the orphanage owner of telling some tale when they had to sleep and didn¡¯t want to. It was also a name written in books. Not magic books, but historic ones, the kind that detailed wars and conflict of the past. Eiren Cardomos, one of Mirel¡¯s Inquisitors. No, not an Inquisitor, The Inquisitor. And not of Mirel¡¯s, since it went down in history as the one that passed law, sentence and punishment to his fellow Inquisitors. Deeming them all sinners, sentencing them all to die under his sword. The Inquisitor that tried to judge his own god. Tried to and survived. Stolen novel; please report. In Charlampian history, Eiren Cardomos was the biggest reason why Mirel lost the war against Arhontissa for the ownership of the Archipelago. A war evenly matched, until he single handedly changed the tides. If Eiren Cardomos was the culprit, it was no wonder that Dianthus'' supervisor didn¡¯t last a single second. A second was already too much! Velvet opened her mouth, and yet, nothing came out for a while, her brain working faster than her body. ¡°Wait¡­ why didn¡¯t I ask about the Archmage¡¯s identity first..?¡± Realizing that she¡¯d been played, she squinted at the Prophet. All the things it had said, all the things it had done, were so that fate ended on the path where Velvet didn¡¯t ask about the Archmage before making the Deal. Damned mind-reading, future-seeing pieces of sh- ¡°Don¡¯t glare at me like that, it was the only way to make you go.¡± The Prophet looked almost uncomfortable to the side, probably because Velvet was really close to start throwing hands with it. ¡°You are very stubborn.¡± ¡°I wonder why.¡± It wasn¡¯t a question. ¡°Eiren Cardomos, the mage that, and I quote: ¡®believes in the indomitable spirit of humanity, and their possibilities of defeating Permafrost without relying on fate¡¯.¡± Taking a deep, slow breath, Velvet continued, speaking calmly. ¡°OF COURSE HE CAN SAY THAT! He went against Mirel, his OWN god, as a sorcerer! You know what that means? It means he got the full backlash of breaking a divine oath, which nine times out of ten kills you, and the remaining one cripples you for life! And then he didn¡¯t even die! No, their fight ended in a draw! Eiren Cardomos didn¡¯t break fate! No, he bended it over and fuc-¡± ¡°He still dies in a week.¡± Velvet¡¯s mouth audibly snapped shut, even when she still managed to send the most poisonous gaze she had ever made towards the Prophet. ¡°It''s his death certain?¡± Even when Velvet was afraid of meeting Eiren Cardomos, that didn¡¯t mean she didn¡¯t admire him. The mage part of her feared the ex-Inquisitor, but the Charlampian part was thankful for his actions, driving a war to its conclusion and saving Charlampia from being under Mirel¡¯s Inquisitors ownership. Eiren Cardomos saved more blood than spilled. And, if history books were correct, the amounts he spilled filled rivers. Deep down, and not even that deep, she didn¡¯t want him to die. ¡°It is.¡± The Prophet answered, emotionless. ¡°Inquisitor or Archmage, he is still a human, and all humans eventually die.¡± That was an absolute fact, one that Velvet couldn¡¯t say nothing against. Well, in fact, she didn¡¯t have anything else to say to the Prophet, aside from cursing at it a little bit more. She wasn''t, but she could. ¡°So, when will you send me there? It¡¯s not like we have time to waste chit chatting. Plus, you didn¡¯t even bring tea or pastries, as a good host should bring.¡± ¡°Wasn¡¯t the sand that you ate on the beach enough?¡± ¡°That was consumption for science.¡± ¡°Consumption nonetheless.¡± Velvet squinted at the Prophet. ¡°You are stalling again. What more bad news did you sneak on me now?¡± ¡°You learn fast¡­ I really hope to never see myself asking for your help again¡­¡± Velvet laughed. ¡°Oh, everything can be negotiated, for a well-deserved reward, of course!¡± ¡°That¡¯s the part I fear¡­¡± Clearing its throat, the Prophet continued. ¡°You like guessing things on your own, don¡¯t make me spell it out for you.¡± Laying back, Velvet pondered about it. Deductions were made using the information that she had already gathered, allowing her to fill the hole that was a conclusion. The Prophet was stalling sending her to Eiren Cardomos¡¯ pocket dimension, so the deduction was about the reason. The Prophet had mentioned being unable to see it, while also saying that the reason it was able to drag Velvet to its island was because it saw her location inside the Traversa¡¯s pocket dimension. So, one of the deductions was that, since the Prophet couldn¡¯t see Eiren¡¯s pocket dimension, it couldn¡¯t tell the Mergifari¡¯s Director where to drop her. And yet, Velvet was supposed to somehow reach the pocket dimension without their help. Of course, without their help didn¡¯t mean without help. And, if she knew someone that could take her anywhere no matter the circumstances, ignoring all sorts of obstacles¡­ Well, she did. One that, up until now, had shown interest in the Chained Man, so, in principle, had no reasons to ignore the issue. But He also dropped Velvet half a kilometer away in the air from an island without warning, just as someone would flick away a very annoying bug. Not to mention the nightmares, weird visions, and the constant feeling of Him only putting up with her to reach His own goal. That being said, yeah, her trip to Eiren had a mandatory stop at Lothrigern¡¯s delivery services. Chapter 138. The line that divides us Getting up from the altar¡¯s floor, Velvet dusted off her dress, even when she knew that the dust would disappear on its own, its shape having been artificially created with magic. But, it was an old habit, hard to ignore. ¡°I doubt you want me to call Him in the same space that you are,¡± At least, she was confident in the Prophet¡¯s words of ¡®not allowing dangerous things here¡¯. ¡°So, if you could take me somewhere I can¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯m on it.¡± The Prophet looked towards the fake sky, speaking to someone else. ¡°Yes, there.¡± Then, it faced her again. ¡°I can only hope we never see each other again, Velvet.¡± ¡°Same here. Unless you have pasties ready for next time. And a reward. Second time will only be thirty percent more expensive. Buddy promotion.¡± Letting out a short laugh, the Prophet picked the bowl it had been mixing previously. ¡°Off you go.¡± Without giving time for Velvet to respond, a shadow enveloped her, like a cloak pushed by the breeze, blocking all her senses for a second. Instinctively, she lifted her arms to cover her face, even when her previous encounter with the Director¡¯s concealing magic had shown that act to be futile. When the sensation lifted, she found herself on a field, with short, green grass that reached her knees as far as her eyes could see. The empty pocket dimension was big, but she could still see some of the grass at the distance that showed part of the fake wall covering the formation. So, like with most pocket dimensions, the space looked bigger than it was. Velvet started running a check-up, not wanting to try anything before being sure of her state. Esca, fine. "Hyde? Frenese?" Sending some thoughts into the now unconcealed mental link, she poked them. "What happened?" Hyde asked, almost immediately, while Frenese didn''t say anything, but Velvet still felt her mind hitting something. Instead of answering, Velvet packed her memories of what happened and sent them to Hyde. Then, she made a more short and simple version and sent it to Frenese. She wanted to see if the Devil had something to say about the thing killing Eiren Cardomos. "I won''t say anything for free." Nevermind. Wasting a wish on that wasn''t worthy. "Not even a clue? You probably took a bite or two out of Dianthus." "Or more than two." Was the Devil''s short and final answer. "The Prophet, hm." Hyde said. "A rather corrupted one, if not the most corrupted I''ve ever heard about." "Think it''s because it observed that fate corruption way too much?" Velvet asked. "Perhaps. Even when it can''t die from watching over certain things, that doesn''t mean there''s no consequences of doing so." Velvet didn''t envy the Prophet''s position, just like she didn''t envy the Chosen One''s. Yes, one knew any approaching danger, so it never had the chance of getting harmed, imprisoned or killed, while the other possessed an unrivaled, still growing power, matched with being the closest thing possible to indestructibility. And yet, both of them were chained to their fates, both of those related to saving the world. Grand destinies, filled with certainties. Velvet wasn''t interested in that. For her, fame didn''t mean anything if it didn''t have money attached, and money could always be attached without needing fame. And, as someone with several pursuing mages interested in her or Frenese, the Chosen One''s position was that but worse, with probably every single mage after it. Same as providence. Even someone as knowledge-hungry as herself preferred to be able to act on the things she discovered than simply trying to move others to act a certain way. The Prophet''s job looked awful, as safe as it was. Did it like acting a certain way, or was it all fake, and just a way to make whoever it talked to respond in a certain way? Did it behave the same to everyone? Or was its personality custom-made for each visitor? Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. When someone talked to the Prophet, its answers were based on the future, not the present. In some way, the Prophet didn''t even converse with her, its mind in a faraway place. "Do you have any information about fate''s corruption?" She asked. "No, never heard of it." "Frenese?" "Nothing." "Nothing as free or nothing without a petition?" "Nothing as nothing." That was annoying. If a being like Frenese didn''t know, then the list of who to go to get extra information just got reduced by ninety percent. Maybe more. Even when Velvet would¡¯ve preferred spending some time learning more things about what she was going to face, it seemed fate had a different opinion, giving her no more options to grab. Even so, it wasn¡¯t the worst case scenario, since she wasn¡¯t going in exactly blind. So, she stopped talking to her friendly companions, and started flattening a grass area, to set up the bell altar. She wasn¡¯t prideful enough to try and see if she was allowed to call Lothrigern like a dog, just by shouting His name and waiting for Him to pick her up. Deities liked to feel respected, and Deriliams probably shared that. Setting up an altar worked to make the division between human and god, mage and invocation clearer. We are not equals, we do not stand on the same ground. All mages knew where that line was drawn, with only a few daring to cross it, and fewer surviving doing so. So, Velvet took off some bells, setting them on the now flat ground. ¡­ Dianthus fell down, his knees and palms hitting the hard ground. If this was any other situation, he would mock the posture, but, since it wasn''t, he could only grind his teeth and push himself up. When he did, a warm, wet sensation crept over his chest, slowly dripping down as it got colder. It was blood. Not his blood, but Alola''s. The supervisor assigned to watch over him today. He didn''t even notice the approaching attack, only Alola''s thoughts suddenly cutting off, blood being spilled and a shadow taking him away. Alola''s body didn''t even have time to hit the floor, nor did Dianthus manage to reach it. The only thing he managed to take was this blood splatter. Now, Dianthus was furious. He complained about being supervised all the time, yes, but those mages were just doing their jobs. They didn''t follow him as a hobby, but under the Queen''s orders. They weren''t even the kind of mages that one could say deserved to get butchered like lambs. At least, Alola wasn''t. And yet, when he did manage to check his kidnapper''s thoughts, the only thing that crossed his mind about him were. "Sinful." Dianthus lifted one hand, touching the wet spot in his clothes, tainting his gloves red. Dammit. Raising his head, he faced the unknown mage, not hiding his face of disgust. As one of his abilities, Dianthus'' could see the "hidden truth". That meant reading thoughts, and seeing the true form of monsters, illusions and the things hidden under them. Escas¡¯ true forms were one of those things, hidden inside mages bodies, ready to pop out where they become witches. And the one in front of him was the bloodiest Esca he had ever seen. It extended everywhere he saw, the red rivers passing him and losing themselves in the distance, a metallic, burnt smell following the trails, appearing as a red mist. He could barely catch a glimpse of the Esca''s appearance under all that blood. A thin but tall, black cloaked figure, its cloth stained red. It carried a golden scale, the empty plates of which were chained to the ribs and to the heart within. He didn''t recognize that Paradigm. Blinking, he activated the spell that stopped him from seeing beyond reality, coming face to face with the man, if he could be called that, that brought him here. A strong, well-built, middle aged body, taller than him, above the two meters mark. Short, dirty blond hair brushed back, and wearing a simple tunic. What caught his attention the most was his eyes, a penetrating blue. Not as dark as the ones from Charlampians, but colder, like ice. All in all, he was an imposing presence just with his looks, and, if to those, one added the smell of death within him... But Dianthus didn''t flinch, no. He was the Chosen One dammit. He would confront scarier sights in the future. "You didn''t remain on your knees. Good." The mage said, not making any motion to get closer. He was referring to the pressure of his own presence. A combination of the blood flowing from his Esca and that Esca¡¯s own level, almost at the peak of magecraft, enough to make almost any mage lower their heads and fall down between spasms, and humans to go insane with paranoia, an irreparable feeling of becoming prey invading their minds. Even Dianthus felt his hands tremble, before forcefully removing that reaction from his body. If one removed fear from themselves, then they would fear nothing, if one removed pain, then they would feel nothing. Adopting an offensive position, he got ready. ¡°Unfortunately for you, not even cutting off my legs will keep me kneeling.¡± Chapter 139. Outshine the stars, outrun the sea For an Archmage, he didn¡¯t use magic to fight, instead employing a more¡­ hands-on approach. That was Dianthus'' consensus upon taking a punch that sent him backwards several meters and broke several ribs, now healed. Well, no, it wasn¡¯t. By peeking over the Archmage¡¯s thoughts, he was confident in not needing magic to ¡®seal¡¯ him, and that the fight would be over soon, to which Dianthus was decided to prove wrong. He hadn¡¯t had a great beginning, but that was the usual for him. He didn¡¯t win by overwhelming his opponents from the start, but by wearing them out, bit by bit. Now, that didn¡¯t mean he was weak, just that his present enemies had just been unfairly selected. From Frenese, a Devil over six hundred years old, to the Archmage, probably also over five hundred years; Dianthus, who was nineteen, suffered from the difference in experience. If he were to be matched against someone his age (Igern not included, well, actually including him), it would be a guaranteed win for him. Maybe also including mages three times his age. But no, a Devil and an Archmage it was, straight to a damned boss. And he didn¡¯t even finish his fight against Frenese, since the Devil ended up being resealed by Velvet. And Frenese was extremely weakened over being starved, sealed and regularly blood-drained for hundreds of years. Compared to the Devil, the Archmage was in a perfect state. Of course, Devils were Devils and mages were mages, so comparing them was ridiculously unfair. No mage could survive what Frenese survived, for example. But enough of that, back to the fight. Raising his hand, Dianthus summoned five enormous swords made of light, each one of them towering above him in a circle, their tips pointing outwards. Clenching his fist, the swords launched themselves in different directions, a thundering noise arising from the sheer speed, quickly followed by a bang that shook the whole pocket dimension, the swords crashing against the walls holding it stable. One of his plans was bringing down the pocket dimension with him. After all, he would survive doing so- With a single snap of fingers, not from Dianthus¡¯, his swords disintegrated, the formation instantly repairing itself. - And, if that failed, at least he would¡¯ve made the Archmage use the magic he didn¡¯t need to use. Just to prove a point. The Archmage took a step towards him, and then another and another, all of them at the same instant. Once again, it wasn¡¯t magic, he was simply that quick. Reading his mind didn¡¯t help, since he was fighting him relying mostly on muscle memory, treating Dianthus¡¯ as if he was a meat witch, even when the only similarity was the skill to regrow flesh and bones. Dianthus barely had time to react to the stab, a piercing hit he didn¡¯t even feel, traversing his shoulder right at the joint, through bone and nerve, making his right arm fall limp to the side. Instantly, he summoned several light pillars that circled around him at immense speed, erasing all the stones and dirt that came in contact with them. And yet, the Archmage had already retreated, refusing to fight him in close combat. He was mostly gauging Dianthus¡¯ skills, just to test and ¡®capture¡¯ him better. You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. Clicking his tongue, he reached for the knife lodged in his shoulder, grabbing the handle and pulling. That¡¯s when he felt that some part of the knife¡¯s tip had ¡®opened¡¯, difficulting the removal and remaining stuck inside his bones. ¡°This is an Inquisitor¡¯s weapon.¡± He muttered, side eyeing the Archmage. Mirel and Arhontissa had been at war several times, and not just over Charlampia¡¯s ownership. That one was just the most ¡®recent¡¯, ¡®big¡¯ conflict, followed by a string of smaller ones. What Dianthus¡¯ meant by that was: any Arhontissian that had a minimum combat training had studied how to recognize Inquisitor¡¯s weapons, symbols and modus operandis. This type of knife was called an Umbrella Knife, due to how it opened once inside someone. Usually used to deal with flesh mages and witches, but they worked on almost everything. But, Dianthus thought, changing his hold into a firmer one. It only works on flesh mages because they can¡¯t block pain, one of the many, many reasons why they go mad so easily. And that¡¯s not an issue here. With a strong pull, he ripped out the knife, several bloody bone shards flying out and falling on the ground. Dianthus moved his shoulder slightly, the gruesome wound closing until nothing remained, not even a single scar. Then, he used a spell to fix and clean his clothes, removing his blood and fixing the hole, leaving the fabric spotless. He didn¡¯t even need to read the Archmage¡¯s mind to feel the grimace he just made. Mages were really picky about wasting magic on the battlefield on unnecessary stuff, like repairing damaged clothes or cleaning their bodies from blood and dust. He had been admonished countless times just for doing so, the reason why he kept on doing it. Not because he was obsessed with cleanliness, but because it annoyed his superiors. And¡­ yes, because he was also a bit of a clean freak. The texture of blood on his skin bothered him, even when he wasn¡¯t currently feeling it. He just knew it was there, stuck to him. The Archmage quickly recovered his composure, not making any comments, to Dianthus¡¯ dismay. ¡°Oh well.¡± He said, starting to channel magic on the next attack. This time, he would make sure that the Archmage showed what his Paradigm was made of, because- The ground started cracking, like if a spider web suddenly grew below it, constantly expanding, tangling everything over its strings. Light came from below the broken earth, faint at first, blinding at second, but, unlike normal, immaterial light, this one had a half-liquid texture, like lava coming from underneath. Like bubbles, uncountable light spheres separated themselves from the light sea, floating towards the sky, slowly, almost in a serene manner. A mesmerizing spectacle to anyone present to see it, even when both mages present knew that the beauty didn¡¯t remove or hide the actual threat of that attack. He wasn¡¯t joking when he mentioned that only experienced beings had the skills to rival his own. Even when he hadn¡¯t reached the peaks of magecraft yet, he had crossed more than half the path. Right in the middle of the raising, light-bleeding ground, Dianthus chanted, separating his hands. ¡°All-encompassing brilliance, land of the beginning,¡± ¡°Cradle of Stars, Solaris.¡± As the ¡®bubbles¡¯ started waking up, their light expanding, he grinned, watching how the Archmage had no more ¡®Inquisitor¡¯ skills or weapons that could rival a whole Structuralization, and instead had to rely on magic, lifting one arm, with a black shadow curling around his legs, progressively increasing in size. That¡¯s how most Inquisitors worked, anyway. Killing everyone that used magic, accusing them of sin, while being mages themselves, most of them from both types. As the Queen of Arhontissa had once told him, ¡®If possessing an Esca is a sin, then all Inquisitors are sinners.¡± It¡¯s fine if you want your Paradigm to remain mysterious, if the blame of using magic feels too much, He mocked the Archmage inwardly, but, if you want to match me, you should be more than ready to spend all the magic you have in storage. Because I will never run out of mine. Chapter 140. No longer a singular you Lox was sitting on one of the outside tables of the cafe. He had been somewhat released from the hospital for now, even when he was still recuperating from Doireann¡¯s stab. Long story short, as long as he didn¡¯t move around too much, the wound would remain closed, he would be free to roam around, and also free from doing any work. It didn¡¯t matter if Doireann was sorry or not from letting her Velvet take advantage of her¡­ upfront personality, causing such a catastrophic defeat and delivering a devastating blow to the noble¡¯s confidence, with an extra blow to Lox¡¯s own chest; since at the end, Doireann¡¯s own parents, which were his Selectors, took it as a ¡®Character building skirmish¡¯, or ¡®Children¡¯s play¡¯. What if he almost died? Well he didn¡¯t, so it wasn¡¯t a problem. To them, at least. Laying back on his chair, he took a cigarette from his pockets, lit it with a lighter instead of magic, and put it into his mouth. The doctor had banned him from smoking, since the wound was quite close to his lungs and some other reasons he didn¡¯t bother to remember, but Lox wanted to scratch the itch of addiction. Doctor¡¯s orders were just doctor¡¯s suggestions if one didn¡¯t care enough, after all. Trying to take another puff from his cigarette, he stopped inhaling once no smoke came out. Lox pulled it away from his lips, looking at the tip. There, something closely resembling bite marks had appeared, ¡®eating¡¯ the fire. ¡°It''s a bad habit.¡± He spoke out loud, nonchalantly. Really now? Of all the weirdos to encounter¡­ ¡°Hm? Isn¡¯t it the same thing as only eating the smoke? It¡¯s even faster.¡± ¡°But it doesn''t hit the same.¡± Taking off his lighter, he turned it on again. ¡°Ah¡­ I don¡¯t get it, I don¡¯t get it.¡± Cheron said, appearing from thin air, her long sleeves almost reaching the floor. She made no motion to use her hidden arms to move the chair backwards, and yet, the chair did so on its own, its legs sliding over the floor and positioning itself next to her. Cheron sat down on the opposite side of the table, remaining silent. The only noise coming from her being the dragging of her sandals moving back and forth over the ground. Even when she was probably almost an adult, Cheron was on the short side, barely a meter and half tall. Makes you wonder where all the things she eats go¡­ He thought, eyeing Charon¡¯s legs. It was just an instant, but Charon turned her head to stare at him. ¡°Hm? Did something catch your eye?¡± ¡°Nothing.¡± He quickly answered. ¡°If you aren¡¯t looking at anything, you aren¡¯t using your eyes, so I can take them.¡± ¡°I¡¯d rather you didn¡¯t.¡± Cautiously, he used some magic to block the feeling pricking behind his eyes, slowly; so that it didn¡¯t feel like ¡®tempting¡¯ Cheron¡¯s appetite. Though, if she were to keep pushing¡­ He was still recovering from a stab dammit. One just couldn¡¯t enjoy a smoke in this place, couldn¡¯t he? Fortunately, Cheron didn¡¯t keep trying to bite him, at least for now. A ¡®for now¡¯ that he gave like five minutes to be maintained before she tried once again to bite him. That was how things worked with her, after all. Honestly, if he tried to advance and fully open his Esca, one of the biggest reasons for that would be getting away from mages like her. But, once again, he didn¡¯t want harder missions. It was a lose-lose scenario. This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. He preferred to stay like this, decaying, like his Paradigm suggested. At least until his ¡®debt¡¯ with his Selector got fulfilled, and he became free from his current obligations. He had no use in progressing while being subjected to a second party whims. Not like he was the only ¡®novice¡¯ mage stalling, from the list of mages wrapped in an undesirable contract with a Selector. ¡°Your brain is rotting.¡± Cheron interrupted his thoughts. ¡°Would be a shame if it went too bad to eat.¡± Here we go again. ¡°So it¡¯s yours.¡± ¡°I will eat mine before it goes bad.¡± That¡¯s the thing worrying everyone¡­ Lox was sure that she would do so. In fact, it was somewhat public knowledge that Cheron had eaten her own hands, maybe even more. It wasn¡¯t a proven rumor though, since no one could confirm to have seen what laid under her sleeves, but her Esca was located on her neck, which, asides from special occasions, only happened when a mage didn¡¯t have hands. In addition to that, some mages weren¡¯t allowed to advance due to risks, and Cheron was one of them. She would remain stuck at the peak of their rank, her Esca never fully opened. And it would stay that way, at least until her mind became unable to hold it together anymore. Once that happened, well, death was the only remaining option. In Lox¡¯s opinion, she had lasted longer than he expected, probably due to being under Hasdrubal¡¯s care, who kept her mental state stable. Stable enough to not go full witch, that is. Anything aside from that was¡­ well¡­ Both of them remained in silence for several minutes. A very uncomfortable silence, which felt like hours for him. Especially because some things close to him kept getting bitten. The cake he had ordered and abandoned, for starters, found half of its portion ¡®disappearing¡¯ into the air, together with a chunk of the plate. Resigning himself to being the one to poke the hornet''s nest, he opened his mouth. ¡°So¡­ what brings you here today?¡± ¡°Right!¡± Cheron cheerfully jumped, as if she had been waiting for it. ¡°I had to deliver a message to someone from Arhontissian nobility, but none of them let me in¡­ So, Bal-bal just told me to give it to an intermediary instead.¡± By Bal, she must mean Hasdrubal¡­ Of course no one let you in, they probably even activated security measures just in case! ¡°Yeah, I can do that.¡± Joining her sleeves together, Cheron smiled almost innocently, making Lox feel a cold sweat crawling down his back. ¡°Great! You know? Somebody once told me that killing the messenger sends a message.¡± ¡°But¡­ you are the messenger.¡± Pondering for a few seconds, Cheron exclaimed in surprise. ¡°Oh! Then that won¡¯t work!¡± ¡°Just give me Hasdrubal¡¯s message¡­¡± It almost pained him. Being so used to dealing with weirdos, that he already knew how to manage several of them. ¡°No need to be so jumpy.¡± Cheron complained, before tilting her head. ¡°We¡¯ve found the bug, and its eggs will soon follow. That¡¯s the message.¡± ¡°Cryptic.¡± Lox said, even when the message wasn¡¯t for him. ¡°It¡¯s actually quite simple, you silly! Bugs lay eggs on food, and taking a bite of infested food can sour a meal!¡± Cheron, define what you consider food. He thought. ¡°Not that I mind eating bugs.¡± She clarified. ¡°But people usually remove the parts touched by them.¡± ¡°Is it referring to a mole¡­?¡± Was there a traitor on the Arhontissa side? No, Hasdrubal wouldn¡¯t bother sending a message if it was, and it felt more like a threat than a warning. Did Arhontissa have someone infiltrated on the Mergifari¡¯s inner circle? Or well, had, since they had been found already. Of course, Lox hadn¡¯t participated in the Opening competition of this year, nor had he been present during the hijacked ritual that unsealed a Devil, nor had he seen the aftermath. The only information he possessed were the comments and rumors coming from the novice mages that did participate, even when those were half-truths at best, and useless bragging at worst. He didn¡¯t stick his nose where it wasn¡¯t needed, and didn¡¯t ask questions that didn¡¯t need to be asked. And it had been working great for him! Ignoring the latest incident with the stray stab. ¡°You really should check up on that brain of yours.¡± Cheron said, getting up from the chair. ¡°Because, if you keep waiting, you may find that nothing remains.¡± He didn¡¯t answer anything for a second, taking a deep breath from his cigarette. ¡°Say, Cheron.¡± Lox finally said. ¡°Do you think it¡¯s the mage that picks a Paradigm, or it¡¯s the Paradigm the one who picks?¡± Cheron stopped, turning towards him. ¡°It¡¯s the same thing. I am Gluttony, and you¡¯re Decay. You stop being only you when you swim on that sea.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s your answer.¡± He didn¡¯t stop her a second time. You liar. Lox scratched his head. If you were fused with your Paradigm, you wouldn¡¯t be unable to advance. Chapter 141. Very sorry. Really, trust me. The incantation done, all Velvet needed to do was wait and hope. To hope that she wouldn¡¯t be flickered away like a bug like last time. Or tossed in the air. Like last time. And, as the seconds passed, she also hoped for something to happen. It had never taken more than a few seconds to get some sort of reaction, and that was from the non-Lothrigern faeries. Lothrigern¡¯s ones had been way faster. Except now. Of course, she only had three summons to form a comparison, so maybe it wasn¡¯t a weird thing. Maybe Lothrigern was trying to find the pocket dimension first? No, that was ridiculous. ¡°Maybe He is busy?¡± Velvet spoke to herself in a low voice. Should she wait for a bit and then try again? Nothing was appearing on the summoning circle, after all. ¡°Oh, no, don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s not like I¡¯m in a rush or anything. Take all the time you need to notice me.¡± She spoke in a deadpan tone to the empty, Lothrigernless air. Several seconds more passed, and Velvet considered sitting down on the grass to wait, even when that option would soon be crossed off. Above her, something creaked. Not in a loud way, since the crack in question didn¡¯t make any noise, but more in a ¡®magical¡¯ way. She didn¡¯t hear something break, but she felt it. Looking up, right on the top limit of the pocket dimension, a small hole had appeared. With another muted crack, its size expanded, never losing its perfect circumference. Velvet couldn¡¯t help but allow a feeling of dread to creep over her. Whatever that was, it was both spreading and demolishing the pocket dimension from the top. She didn¡¯t know how much damage a pocket dimension could receive before breaking down. Yes, she had seen Nereus crushing a container, same as she had done during her confrontation with the book sealing Frenese. But, even when one¡¯s inner workings were similar to the other, the differences in size were matters to keep in mind. A water balloon popping wasn¡¯t the same as a whole lake suddenly crashing down somewhere. Metaphorically speaking, since she did very much crash a lake somewhere. Maybe an ocean would be a better comparison, in fact. Once again, she wasn¡¯t sure and had no real proof outside her own conjectures. What she had was a black, fathomless hole growing over her head, with something coming in from outside. A finger. One at first, a hand at second, and then, another hand. Human-like in shape, beastly in appearance, with brown, thick fur covering them, and long, sharp red claws on its ends; they grabbed the hole¡¯s edges, fingers digging over the breaking formation, forcing it to remain stable. Then, from the void¡¯s middle, another hand appeared, reaching down, towards her. It wasn¡¯t making a grabbing motion, or a slapping one, not coming down fast enough for Velvet to consider it some sort of attack. Not like she could really defend from something like that in case it was. Compared to that hand, she didn¡¯t even reach the pinkie¡¯s size, and there were three- no, five of those same hands, with four holding the pocket dimension from crumbling. So, she waited for the hand to come down, looking at the hole from where it kept entering, watching the thing¡¯s forearm. Velvet was trying to calculate the¡­ monster? Being? Full size with that information, but, even when the hands looked human, the distance between joints were not like a human¡¯s. Either the thing had abnormally long arms, or its hands were the only or one of the few human-like parts that it possessed. And, if the distance from the pocket¡¯s dimension top to the ground was something to go for, the arms length was more than three hundred meters, since she hadn''t seen the shoulder, and the hand was already next to her. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. It didn¡¯t grab or scoop her up, like she was expecting, instead turning its palm facing up and touching the ground. And, when Velvet chose to stare at it for several seconds, it curled and uncurled its fingers two times in a ¡°Come here¡± motion. Pretty rude, the thing. And impatient. ¡°I¡¯m going, I¡¯m going.¡± Since it probably was her transport, she climbed the hand, sitting right in the middle of the palm, which soon started raising back to the hole from where it came. And, as soon as she also crossed the hole, the four hands holding the pocket dimension retreated, letting it fall apart. Whatever the thing grabbing her was, it had effortlessly destroyed the pocket dimension just to reach her. And those were expensive as hell to make, in magic, money and resources. So much that, even when they weren¡¯t Velvet¡¯s properties, she still winced in pain. The Prophet should¡¯ve seen this coming, so it probably picked the option with less loss¡­ or maybe it didn¡¯t care, since it¡¯s essentially freeloading from the Director¡¯s assets. Ignoring the question about the Prophet¡¯s expenditures, Velvet looked around. Aside from the darkness surrounding her, she could only see the hands. A lot of them, holding the darkness away from her. All of them were gigantic, covered in brown fur, the only distinguishable differences between them being the colors of the claws. From the deep red of the ones holding Velvet, to blue, green and even yellow. Some weren¡¯t just on one color, sharing several, and some had symbols drawn over them. Not magic symbols, just circles or lines, almost decoratively. And all of these disjointed arms were pushing against the void, who futilely tried to push back, to close the ¡®tunnel¡¯ where Velvet was traveling. Like a bottomless pitch dark sea, its waves creeped slowly around her, offering a hideout to predators of the deep sea. Or, at least, she felt things staring at her from behind the hands. Unlike the darkness of her dream, where, aside from the Chained Man¡¯s company, and, when she couldn¡¯t see, hear or taste and the loneliness was palpable; this darkness was full of life, of life she also couldn¡¯t see, hear or touch. But, unlike her dream, Velvet hoped she didn''t need to. ¡­ Even when it felt like hours had passed, it didn¡¯t take long for her to exit the hand-made tunnel, the sea-like void being pushed further and further away, as the quantity in hands increased, each one of them going deeper and deeper into the void. And, climbing around what Velvet assumed was the main body. It was immense, and she couldn¡¯t gauge it even halfway, most of it being hidden behind the curtain of darkness. Looking up, to where she assumed the face, or head would be, she saw nothing. No, if she squinted a bit, she could glimpse- A cacophony of voices suddenly filled the space, making her flinch and lower her head in pain. She didn¡¯t understand what they were saying at first, until they fell silent and only one voice could be heard. ¡°Quit that. This veil is only for your safety.¡± The being spoke straight into her mind, or maybe not. She wasn¡¯t sure if the voice was coming from her ears or brain, or maybe both. Massaging her temples, Velvet nodded. ¡°I see¡­¡± Aren¡¯t you taking me to Erin Cardomos pocket dimension? Why the not-suspicious-at-all sidetrack? Waiting for the being to say something else, Velvet remained silent for an unnecessary amount of seconds, before speaking again when it didn¡¯t. ¡°I remember doing a fae summoning ritual.¡± ¡°Unnecessary, but yes, you did.¡± Did it mean the ritual itself? Or doing one to call Lothrigern? ¡°You are not a fairy, are you?¡± It didn¡¯t answer, not like it needed to, since it was pretty obvious that it wasn¡¯t a fairy. Velvet simply asked to see if it was bothered by her asking stuff. A silent answer wasn¡¯t a no, and, to Velvet, it just meant ¡®keep trying¡¯. ¡°Are you acquaintanced with Lothrigern?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°In what way?¡± ¡°We are equals.¡± The thing said, almost expectantly. Oh shit. Velvet almost blurted out. That meant¡­ ¡°Oh shit.¡± She ended up saying. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°You are not.¡± ¡°I am now. Very sorry.¡± She apologized for her behavior, just in case, even when the Deriliam had both seen through, and called out on her bullshit. Chapter 142. All roads end with tree Muirenmaith walked down the empty corridors of the Luachra Temple. As the Queen of Arhontissa, she had been busy with the political matters raised after Dianthus¡¯ disappearance, which didn¡¯t imply searching for him as much as it implied dealing with the ¡®concerns¡¯ raised by Arhontissian¡¯s nobles about the relationships with the Mergifari. Some of them believed that being the Mergifari¡¯s biggest sponsor meant that they were free to rally the pocket dimensions of any mage suspected of being the kidnapper. It wasn¡¯t that they couldn¡¯t do so, actually. If they were absolutely certain of the pocket dimension belonging to the kidnapper, that is, which most of the accusations being thrown around weren¡¯t. They were simply mages with unfinished business or grudges against someone else, where a single ¡®Are you absolutely sure that they are the responsible?¡¯ had the accusers falling silent. ¡°Maybe they are, they have the means and reasons¡­¡± ¡°Perhaps, it would make sense that they¡­¡± ¡°It''s possible, I won¡¯t put it past them¡­¡± She didn¡¯t need a maybe, but alas, a Queen should listen to her people, even if it was just to deliver the illusion of closeness, even when, right now, the Chosen One¡¯s disappearance had been pushed to the second place of immediate problems. The first one being the reason behind her current presence in the Luachra Temple, also known as Arhontissa¡¯s Chamber, the place where the deity giving name to her continent resided. For some unknown reason, Arhontissa had left her temple for several minutes, which¡­ wasn¡¯t a big deal on its own, since not even she, the Queen, could tell the deity what to do and where to go at any moment, not even as a suggestion. The problem laid on the motives behind what she did once outside, which was the same as all the other living gods. Because it wasn¡¯t only Arhontissa that abandoned her temple, but Mirel, Idir and Paraiso did so too. For three whole minutes, and, at the same time, all living gods had gone on the defensive. Casting a shield that, like Paraiso¡¯s own walls of light, covered the whole continent they ruled, cutting its connection with the outside completely and sealing off all the living beings inside, leaving no entry and no exit. A behavior one would expect to be shown during war, not peace, and one that only lasted minutes, disappearing quickly and without issue. And not only that, since the barrier casted by the gods during that time wasn¡¯t an average one, like Paraiso¡¯s was, no. To any untrained and young mages, the shields looked similar to his, while being nothing of the sort. Not like any of those mages could¡¯ve seen Paraiso¡¯s second barrier at that moment, since they were hiding behind Arhontissia¡¯s one. But, for Muirenmaith, who had lived to see the end of a Machia, and the fall of a god, the defenses raised carried a different feel. They were the kind casted by a deity ready to die, a last stand type of spell to protect as many believers as possible. They were the kind that remained after the god''s death. She remembered Dodon¡¯s, Charlampia¡¯s god, a barrier which Arhontissa sank next to his corpse after his death. Now it rested on the deepest point of the ocean, next to all the Arhontissians ships that were unable to escape the deity¡¯s fall. A deity¡¯s barrier didn¡¯t harm the god¡¯s own believers, but it destroyed anything else. That¡¯s why they used it while fighting another god, and no other time. With that explained, the reason behind the Queen¡¯s urgent visit to Arhontissa was obvious. For three minutes, all four gods had been ready to fight something to the death. Something no human, beast or living being saw or felt, a list that perhaps included the Mergifari¡¯s Director, since no sort of defenses had been raised on the island. That came as a relief for the factions who were under living gods, since the Mergifari¡¯s High Command liked to compare the Director¡¯s power to the gods. And not without reason, since the Mergifari still didn¡¯t belong to any of them, and not because they hadn¡¯t tried to change that. If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. And yet, the Director is a human, and all humans have a time limit. The Queen thought, arriving at the door marking the entry to Arhontissa¡¯s Chambers. Made of intertwined wood, same as the corridors, and situated on top of the Luachra, the giant tree that oversaw the whole continent, whose branches held the sky. That last part was a myth, since the sky held on perfectly on its own, but, with the tree being blue, and having the size to cover a country with its trunk, it was no wonder that anyone seeing it from below reached the conclusion that the Luachra and the sky were connected. But that was the opinion from the people below. Muirenmaith, the Queen, had been at the top, and could guarantee the disconnection. Arhontissa also was close to the top, at the zone where the trunk started to divide itself into different branches, going even further and beyond. Like the tree, the god¡¯s size was immense, enough to match the ends of the Luachra¡¯s trunk, making the wooden chamber feel more like a throne, and less like if a bug was crawling over some tree, just like the Queen felt being there. Reaching the deity was quite the walk, so Muirenmaith only visited on important occasions, even when she, as the Queen, represented Arhontissa¡¯s will, voice and authority. But she was busy, and it was A. Very. Long. Walk. And yes, it was taking magic into account. The Luachra wasn¡¯t called the Sky Holding Tree for nothing. If the living gods'' reactions hadn¡¯t been so¡­ drastic, she would¡¯ve just waited for Arhontissa to send her a vision, which she hadn¡¯t done. And she could, visions being something easy to do for gods. Arhontissa¡¯s skin was pale green, almost white and translucent, ending in blue at the fingers, with dots resembling freckles across her body. A dress made of interwoven vines, leaves and roots, from where several flowers dangled. Her hair was long and dark green, falling loose around the tree. When the deity saw her, the Queen¡¯s appearance having been fixed just before entering, she sighed. ¡°Oh, you shouldn¡¯t have bothered coming here.¡± Well she did. ¡°And I wanted to wait for your notices, but all the noble families asked for some answer.¡± ¡°You¡¯re the Queen. No amount of nobles¡¯ resolve should tumble yours.¡± ¡°Indeed, but-¡± ¡°If a heap of dukes and barons can topple a Queen, it means that a heap of queens can topple a god.¡± ¡°That would be ridicul-¡± ¡°Yet here you are.¡± ¡°Four gods arised and shut off their reigns, anyone would be ask-¡± ¡°Anyone?¡± ¡°Me. I am asking why.¡± This time, Arhontissa didn¡¯t interrupt her, and yet, the deity grinned. ¡°Humans really are like flowers, hiding their true motives behind walls made of petals.¡± ¡°And you like peeling flowers very much.¡± ¡°And I like peeling flowers very much.¡± Arhontissa repeated, laying back against the branches and playing with her hair, partially covering the sun rays that managed to pass through the branches, darkening the chamber. ¡°One of Them broke reality and slipped in, but retreated fairly quickly. As I said, nothing barons, dukes and queens need to worry about.¡± ¡°Do we know why They entered?¡± ¡°Do we know why They do anything? Pure whimsy. Boredom. A dare between Them. As long as the road is entertaining, the consequences are an afterthought.¡± Arhontissa said, clearly pissed at the Deriliam¡¯s short appearance. Muirenmaith didn¡¯t answer or add anything. The enmity behind gods and Deriliams was old, older than her, and even older than Arhontissa. It was almost a natural type of hate, the kind that came with being. It wasn¡¯t a matter of good and evil, of right and wrong, and that¡¯s why she remained silent. Plenty of mages called upon the Deriliams'' gazes for assistance with magic, but They never showed up in the flesh. Unless it was Lothrigern, but He was also the only Deriliam capable of entering and exiting Reality and any realm without making so much as a ripple, unlike His fellow Deriliams, which, as just happened, would crack it, sending all the gods into jeopardy. In short, the conflict between gods and Deriliams wasn''t for humans to comment on, or, at least, for Muirenmaith to do so, instead choosing to change the conversation, now that she had the answer for which she came in the first place. ¡°We also found a statue of a god in Permafrost in perfect state.¡± ¡°So?¡± Her wrath left behind, Arhontissa looked at the strand of hair she was playing with abandon. ¡°The possible existence of a seventh god.¡± ¡°A god with zero believers is no concern for a true one. The kid was made to handle it.¡± By kid, she meant Dianthus, who they had lost. ¡°We- I will find him.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t waste your time, he will come back on his own.¡± When Muirenmaith looked at her with some unvoiced doubt, she added. ¡°He has legs.¡± Chapter 143. Dont cross the four Velvet looked to the sides, to the unending sea of hands that kept the ¡®void¡¯ at bay. Then, she rested one of her hands against the palm holding her, touching the Deriliam¡¯s fur. A single strand of hair would be a priceless magic ingredient¡­ Greed was part of the Knowledge Paradigm, rearing its head right now. Still, she had the common sense to not pluck out any of them. Not like she could, probably. Since Velvet was wearing gloves, she couldn¡¯t feel the fur texture, except for the fact that it was rather thick. The information about Deriliams includes Their name, title and sometimes what They created, but not Their appearance. Yet, based on Lothrigern, Their creations share some details with the one responsible¡­ She mused, trying to deduce if the Deriliam was one she already knew about. Haashi Morgania, Mother of Witches; Andras Apolyon, Father of Devils; and Baetylus, Forge of Hollow Earth. Those were the Deriliams whose names she was aware of, excluding Lothrigern¡¯s. Four in total. Unlike gods, who had sculptures, paintings, murals and more made on their likeness, she hadn¡¯t found anything of the sort for the Deriliams. Which was truly a shame, since she would love to have a Lothrigern figurine. Oh well. Could this one be Morgania? I don¡¯t feel any sort of connection with it, nor do I feel like this place is the Primeval Sea. I also doubt it''s Baetylus, since I¡¯ve never seen someone working at a forge with claws. Maybe I¡¯m in Hell, and this it¡¯s Andr- The Deriliam hummed slowly, catching Velvet¡¯s attention. ¡°Careful with that name. He is in mourning, but with so many eyes on you¡­ it can have quite the pull.¡± ¡°Even as a thought?¡± ¡°Intentions don¡¯t need to be spoken out loud.¡± That was true, magically speaking. Mages didn¡¯t need to describe what a spell did, for it to take effect. Magic was based on the intentions of the caster, nor on how quick they could recite an incantation. Which meant that thinking about Andras Apolyon was fine, but her intention of suggesting that the Deriliam was Him could have consequences. And not only that. It was also the second time that a Deriliam had cut her out from ¡®saying¡¯ Andras Apolyon¡¯s name, the first time being Lothrigern during the dream. She still had mentioned it once previously, when everything went red, the formation holding the dream in place activating, almost making her lose control. But that was at the start, when I didn¡¯t know as many Deriliam¡¯s names. That¡¯s what the ¡®eyes on me¡¯ part means. ¡°So, whoever the Chained Man is,¡± Velvet spoke to the Deriliam. ¡°Not all of you agree with Lothrigern¡¯s goals, right?¡± At least, by Their reaction, Andras Apolyon was probably against Him. ¡°We disagree on many things, and are neutral on many others.¡± ¡°You forgot the agree part¡­¡± ¡°We don¡¯t.¡± Velvet let out a nervous laugh over that. She had hoped that the Deriliam¡¯s goals aligned, while maybe being against the gods or something else. But, if they were infighting¡­ it didn¡¯t look good for her. ¡°Are you neutral?¡± The Deriliam fell silent for a moment. ¡°I am against it.¡± It declared, before adding. ¡°But I won¡¯t interfere.¡± And what''s called what you are doing right now?! She screamed inwardly, flinching when she felt the Deriliam gaze moving downwards. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. ¡°After this time.¡± It added. ¡°The others are satisfied with just a faraway glance, but I prefer to see it up close. Makes decisions easier.¡± ¡°What decision?¡± ¡°If I do something he can¡¯t.¡± Velvet remained silent after that, the hand holding her moving slowly from left to right, with the Deriliam¡¯s hidden gaze following her. ¡°Like what?¡± Well, she tried to remain silent, but, forgive her, she was being kept in the void with a colossal, million handed being who kept examining her like a fancy bug. ¡°You ask a lot of questions.¡± ¡°W-well, you keep answering them.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± It said, and, Velvet could delude herself into saying that the uncanny, monotonous voice pressing itself against her brain was reassuring. Which said a lot about her mental state. ¡°If he can traverse space, then I can add space. Don¡¯t move.¡± From the dark came another hand, also gigantic and beastly, brown fur covering it completely, with long, red and sharp fingernails at the end. It extended the index, pointing at Velvet, before advancing to poke her. It came slow, waaay to slow, almost hesitantly, just like how a newbie seamstress would thread a needle when her teacher was looking. That¡¯s to say, it gave Velvet absolutely zero confidence. Was it the first time the Deriliam did this to a human? ¡°It will be fine.¡± The Deriliam comforted Velvet, just to make it worse with the next sentence. ¡°If you explode, I will fix you right up.¡± ¡°Would I be the exact same as before popping?¡± The Deriliam hummed a bit. ¡°Probably not.¡± Then I don¡¯t want to! Trying to think of another way to advance, she quickly added. ¡°What if¡­ what if you stand still and I move forward?¡± Stopping the hand¡¯s advances, the Deriliam spoke. ¡°If you¡¯re able to get it deep enough that it grazes your heart.¡± ¡°I can. I¡¯m good at calculations.¡± When the Deriliam didn¡¯t add anything else, Velvet moved forward, touching the claw¡¯s end. She felt a tinge of pain when it started crossing her chest, and yet, neither her clothes got damaged nor her blood was spilled. If she had to guess the reason someway, the Deriliam wasn¡¯t a material nor a spiritual being, but a third thing, so, probably, the nail wasn¡¯t digging into Velvet¡¯s body or soul, but somewhere else. It still hurt like being slowly stabbed in the chest would hurt, though. But she pressed on. Pain was part of her calculations, she didn¡¯t lie about those. Digging the nail closer, just until it exactly grazed the center of Velvet¡¯s heart, she waited. Aside from the pain, she didn¡¯t feel anything else. ¡°Done.¡± Moving back, and pulling the claw out, Velvet looked down, not sensing anything different. ¡°See? You¡¯re fine.¡± ¡°... You just gave a sigh of relief, didn¡¯t you? I heard it.¡± The hand holding Velvet started closing. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Very sorry.¡± Since the hand stopped curling its fingers, Velvet spoke again. ¡°So¡­ why did you do that?¡± ¡°To hold.¡± ¡°To hold¡­?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± She didn¡¯t feel able to hold more stuff than the one she was already able to hold. Unless the stabbing wasn¡¯t metaphorical, and she did get a hole dug inside her chest in a pocket heart fashion. Not in her body nor soul, but inside a different third thing. Well, if the Deriliam said that it was done, it was done. No use doubting it. And, by the Deriliam¡¯s previous words, this was the last time it would interfere, which implied that she would be entering Erin Cardomos¡¯ pocket dimension with Lothigern¡¯s help, and not its. ¡°Last question.¡± Velvet said, keenly aware of the timer going down. ¡°Your name.¡± It wasn¡¯t worded as a question, and yet, it was one. The Deriliam laughed, or, at least, made a hum that resembled a laugh. ¡°Names are eyes, don¡¯t add so many that he feels the pull.¡± ¡°May we never see each other again, Velvet.¡± Once that was said, she heard the increasingly familiar tingle of bells, before her surroundings blurred, changing as if washed away with paint. Of green and gray, the colors she remembered seeing in the vision, the one depicting Erin Cardomos¡¯ pocket dimension. The place where Dianthus was being held. Chapter 144. Fake lights, erased path In Velvet¡¯s vision, Erin Cardomos¡¯ pocket dimension was covered in immense, thorny plants, which coiled and piled over themselves, creating an eerie atmosphere with hardly walkable paths. At present, it wasn¡¯t like that. All of that vegetation had disappeared, and now, some small, young stems peeked from the naked ground, where several craters could be seen in the distance. This should be the aftermath of the fight between them. She looked around for clues about the spells used, but there wasn''t any that she knew, even loosely. She could still deduce some other things, like the fact that it was a single spell that scraped the whole flora of the place. By the way the ground is scarred, I¡¯d say it was done with light magic. Light didn¡¯t burn things down like fire would do, and the damage done by it didn¡¯t ¡®spread¡¯, focusing more on a single point. She had only seen Dianthus using that type of magic, though, so her deductions were based on him. But, since he was one of the two mages fighting, everything pointed at him as the culprit. Even so, the range of this spell is immense¡­ I was sure that Dianthus was the kind that hid his strength, and yet, it¡¯s stronger than Doireann¡¯s Conceptualization. As someone who had never seen anything above the broken Conceptualization that the girl used, she didn¡¯t make assumptions. But still, something doesn¡¯t make sense. A piece of information didn¡¯t fit with the others, bothering her. Well, Erin Cardomos hadn¡¯t shown up yet, unless he was already dead, which was something she doubted. He was the one that sealed Dianthus inside a coffin in that strange temple, after all. Right, the vision. That¡¯s what doesn¡¯t fit. That¡¯s how she knew about the thorns on the pocket dimension, which were now gone, destroyed by Dianthus himself. It wasn¡¯t like the plants on the vision were fake. They had been there previously, the small stems poking from below the dirt belonging to the same plant. She could even see the zones where the plants in her vision had been, and they matched down to perfection. So, the vision wasn¡¯t fake. It had too many details that only a knowledge mage would remember to be fabricated. But, it had derived from the present to the point where it could never come to pass. In the vision, Dianthus had been taken to an old, strange temple, right in the middle of the thorn forest, which meant that he had been captured before having the chance of destroying it. In reality, he had trashed it to the ground. Velvet could choose to ignore the vision, since well, it wasn¡¯t that big of a deal, but it was the reason behind the changes that bothered her. The Prophet had been very adamant about how each timeline had ended up the same, losing the Chosen One, with this one being the only different path, which end it couldn¡¯t see. So, if that vision was from the doomed choices, why had a difference appeared before she showed up? If the changing point was Velvet¡¯s entrance, then the things happening before it should¡¯ve remained the same. And yet, that wasn¡¯t the case. The Prophet can¡¯t see Dianthus because of Fate¡¯s Corruption, but the opposite might not be true. A change like this could only be made by interfering with the things happening between the time when Dianthus got brought into the pocket dimension, and the time when I entered. So, if there¡¯s some conclusion to reach, then the biggest possibility is that Fate¡¯s Corruption can make decisions retroactively. If that¡¯s the case, though, was there ever a chance for Dianthus to lose his Chosen One¡¯s status? Or was it a trap for the Prophet? Even when the deductions looked like this, Velvet felt pretty calm, all things considered. This time she had managed to get the cat out of the box before it jumped at her face, so she had a bigger array of options to pick from, plus not being in a rush. ¡°Hyde.¡± She called. Even when she was confident in her deduction, getting a second opinion could never go wrong. She had been unable to contact them before, not because the Deriliam sealed her connections like the Director did, but because It did occupy her whole mind to speak, even when It was silent. An almost painless, but very taxing act. And it wasn¡¯t like her companions had tried to communicate with her during that moment, instead reducing their mental links down to the minimum possible. Well, Frenese always had his almost shut down, with Velvet having to force her mind to go through every single time, but she had felt Hyde¡¯s thinning when the Deriliam showed up. If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. Guess you can¡¯t really ask for bravery from a spider, a knowledge one nonetheless. They must be the ones that know when to not show up. She joked, still poking the mental link. ¡°I''m here, I¡¯m here.¡± Hyde finally said. ¡°Send me the details.¡± So Velvet did just that, together with her conjectures. Hyde fell silent for a while, processing the information. ¡°Is the building where Dianthus was still standing? We should check that out first.¡± ¡°Before Erin Cardomos shows up, you mean.¡± If the Archmage hadn¡¯t shown up already, then he either was still damaged, didn¡¯t have a security system in place, or he had, but Dianthus crashed it next to¡­ well, everything. Velvet continued. ¡°He also didn¡¯t appear in the vision, even when I walked to where Dianthus was, so that detail remains consistent. We can even assume that whatever killed him on that ¡®timeline¡¯, also affected him on this.¡± That was one of the biggest incognites she had. At first, she expected it to be some kind of revenge from Fate¡¯s Corruption, but, with the fact that it could make retroactive changes, that idea didn¡¯t hold. But yes, the strange temple. It wasn¡¯t far away, and, with the forest gone, she didn¡¯t need to go there, just walk for a bit until it was (or wasn¡¯t) visible. ¡°So¡­¡± She started, going in a straight line this time. ¡°What¡¯s your opinion on the Deriliam?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t It tell you to not investigate?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t mean the name, just,¡± Raising her hands, she made a holding motion. ¡°Everything else.¡± ¡°It explains why His actions were so¡­ like that.¡± Hyde said, referring to Lothrigern. ¡°In this world, only the strongest can make decisions that go against anyone¡¯s wishes, and it seems like the same applies for Them.¡± ¡°So, for the ¡®weak¡¯ party, if their wishes go against the strong¡¯s, their only solution is to work in the shadows, until their goals are at the tip of their fingers, and too late for the strong to change the tides.¡± ¡°Or, until they are found out.¡± Velvet added. ¡°Is the Father of Hell stronger than Lothigern?¡± She avoided using Andras¡¯ name. ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t know. That comparison is a bit far away from my expertise.¡± ¡°A bit.¡± ¡°A very big, immense bit. Comparing two galaxies¡¯ worth bit.¡± But it explained why Lothrigern didn¡¯t get the Chained Man out by His damn self. He probably could deal with everything inside the dream: the chains, the formation that held it together¡­ just not with another Deriliam. Another Deriliam probably being Andras, but that wasn¡¯t confirmed, just had a big chance due to Lothrigern¡¯s own behavior. Velvet didn¡¯t know how They scaled between each other, after all. ¡°Huh?¡± She said, stopping on her tracks. The temple was fine, even when everything surrounding it was gone. I don¡¯t remember it having any sort of protective spell. Did Erin use some when Dianthus attacked? History books didn¡¯t paint Erin Cardomos as a mage with high defenses, but one that didn¡¯t need any sort of protection to cut down everything in his path. Well, either age changed people, or the strange temple was too important to lose. Velvet walked towards it, this time, with a fake sun illuminating the whole place, unlike the vision¡¯s, which was shrouded in thorns. Like the previous time, though, what caught her attention the most was the immense, multi-colored windows, now reflecting the sunlight. Red, blue, green, yellow¡­ if her memories reflected reality, then the interior absolutely crushed the lighting aspect, with the room being almost hypnotic under the colorful lights, and that was with barely any illumination. Almost expectantly, Velvet extended one hand, reaching towards the giant door, to one of the iron handles. The doors weren¡¯t heavy back then, so now¡­ As her fingers touched the iron, the doors fell backwards, like a domino¡¯s piece being flickered. Velvet retracted her hand quickly, escaping the short daze that had clouded her mind. Red, blue, green, yellow¡­ the colors danced over her head. As the door hit the floor, the walls holding the building in place started crumbling, the debris flying up, as it broke down in smaller and smaller particles before disappearing. All the statues, and the tiles covering the floor went next, being reduced to nothingness in seconds. Only the windows remained, with their crystals, red, blue, green, yellow¡­ She looked down, trying to get rid of the colors by looking at the ground. And yet, she found more multiple colored glass below. ¡°The way it shines with the sun¡­¡± Velvet muttered. ¡°It¡¯s oh so beautiful¡­¡± It was so breathtakingly gorgeous, that she almost missed the mage who had summoned it. But she didn¡¯t, turning her head around upon hearing steps. Even under the hypnotic lights, she could see the dirty blond hair and the tall and muscular frame that belonged to Erin Cardomos. Chapter 145. Chronicle of a foretold death Despite never having actually seen the Ashen Arbiter in the flesh, Velvet knew it was him because he looked the same as depicted in history books, even though hundreds of years had passed since the Machia¡¯s end. There were several mages who became famous during the war, so much that even normal people knew of them. Most of them were dead, while some others were written as ¡°disappeared¡±, like Erin Cardomos. So it wasn¡¯t like his appearance was much of a mystery to Velvet. Back in the orphanage, there was one picture book about the last Machia, gifted by Viroa; old, damaged, moldy and missing some pages, to which Velvet remembered joking that it was ¡°Just like her¡±. She got smacked for that. Not too much, since she was faster than the cranky old sailor, but still. The other kids also wondered where Viroa got such an old book, but now she knew that, due to her past as a pirate hunter, it was probably part of some spoils she had pillaged from years ago and dumped on them, just to keep them entertained. And entertained were they, picture books were expensive, after all, so they didn¡¯t have many. So yeah, all in all, she recognized him, down to the pale grayish scar that ran through the left side of his face, obtained after his rebellion against Mirel. And, below that scar, something had wormed its way in, slowly crawling upwards his neck, as if a tree had taken roots under his skin. Velvet traced the serpentine lumps with her eyes, down until his robes started covering them. So this is how you die. ¡­ Dianthus had to give it to him. As a firm follower of the ¡®hit over and over and over until the result changes¡¯, the amount of times he could say that someone was equal to him about using the stubbornness approach could be counted with the fingers of a single hand. Maybe even less. If he had to describe the last hours since he entered the pocket dimension, they could be summarized in a back and forth between his Structuralization and the Archmage¡¯s defense, or, immovable object meets unstoppable force. His Structuralization, Solaris, was composed of light spheres made of pure, concentrated energy, where touching them guaranteed the loss of the handsy part. And, any sort of attack that was strong enough to not be swallowed by them made the spheres go nuclear, releasing all that energy like a bomb. The only downsides of his Structuralization were that it didn¡¯t make distinctions between friend and foe, making it impossible to use most of the time, that it encompassed a relatively big zone, which again, was dangerous for whoever roamed close, and that Dianthus didn¡¯t control the spheres movements. Yes, he created them, but once left the ground, they roamed slowly, usually with the wind, all in random directions, like jellyfishes in the sea, brainless and a danger to whoever or whatever crossed their path. When they collided with each other, though, they fused like melted metal, increasing in size. But, none of those downsides were a worry in his current situation. With only an Archmage close, and inside a pocket dimension, Dianthus had the perfect environment to use Solaris. Hell, in fact, there would hardly be a better situation to use it than this! He could spam Solaris endlessly, until either the pocket dimension got reduced to nothingness, or his kidnapper did. Which only made the Archmage¡¯s reaction weirder to him, even more when his thoughts didn¡¯t reveal any sort of plan or goal, just reacting to his actions. Even so, he had figured several things about his opponent¡¯s Paradigm, since yes, using his Structuralization had obliged him to use magic to defend himself. And, the Paradigm in question was made to counter spells. Every time that one of the spheres got too close to the pocket dimension¡¯s edges, or the Archmage, a shadow moved from below him, its shape morphing into an array of colorful crystal panels, which shattered on impact, scattering the released energy. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. He had some idea about the magic used by Inquisitors, even when the names of their Paradigms eluded him. There were just too many, and he wasn¡¯t an information mage to remember all that. But, now, counterattacking magic was rather¡­ eye rolling for most mages, because it wasn¡¯t practical. Mages knew how their own spells worked, so when those got reflected, the damage was either null or minimal, while the magic expenditure of the counterattack was higher, due to them having to use a stronger spell to counter a weaker one. Now, Inquisitors made that work by moving on pairs while confronting single mages, and, while one reflected the enemies attacks, another dished the damage. But that wasn¡¯t as effective during war, when mages rarely moved alone. And, even less effective in fights of one versus one, where it became a fight of attrition, which was the case now. In fact, the number of Inquisitors who focused on counterattacking magic had diminished with the years, not until extinction, since it had its niche uses, like hunting witches, one of the Inquisition¡¯s main jobs, but enough for that Paradigm to be have a reduced number of practitioners, becoming a stagnant magic which hardly changed or evolved. So in the end, it¡¯s just a resilience competition. Dianthus thought. He had been slightly worried, due to how the Archmage had sweeped in at the start, seamlessly killing his supervisor, but not anymore. His final conclusion was that he was just another dumb but powerful mage, like the ones who tricked the Tarius (and the Tarius themselves) into unsealing Frenese, wasting too much power into harming another for petty reasons. I will just keep Solaris active. It might take several hours or so for him to run out of magic, but it is what it is. ¡°Hey you.¡± He called his companion, to pass the time. When it didn¡¯t answer, he tugged at their connection. A sigh sounded in his head, not bothered, and not disappointed. ¡°Look out.¡± Then, like the previous time, almost too quickly for him to catch on, the Archmage¡¯s thoughts blinked, giving him just enough time to hear a ¡®There¡¯, before he was gone. Immediately, Dianthus raised a shield, which didn¡¯t last long, shattering when a shadow crashed against it the next instant, taking him down with it. Paying no mind to the sound of bones breaking, he searched for the signal of the Archmage¡¯s thoughts. Left. This time he wasn¡¯t caught distracted, which gave him enough time to summon a ray of light, collisioning with the Archmage¡¯s rapidly approaching frame, making him fall back. ¡°Objective possesses some sort of premonition skill or similar. Switching to engagement protocol pertinent.¡± ¡°Was he waiting for yo- No, wait. Did he sense you?¡± He asked, trying to decipher what the protocol was. He didn¡¯t see the future, but the speed with which the Archmage had realized something was off was¡­ a bit alarming, to say the least. ¡°Hate to admit it, but yes.¡± ¡°You could have warned me. Shit. If he knows, he needs to die.¡± Dianthus didn¡¯t plan on killing the Archmage at first, since well, mages were very quick to run away, and there were spells that made tracking and chasing a pain in the ass, but now¡­ Left, back, top. Three simultaneous attacks appeared from thin air, shaped like the Archmage. Two fake copies, one real. He didn¡¯t target any, instead stopping Solaris, destabilizing the light spheres, detonating every single one of them at the same time. For a moment, only white light could be seen, burning and erasing everything that came in close contact with it, including Dianthus. ¡°I know you don¡¯t care, but there is no future where you win.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right, I don¡¯t care.¡± Even if his fate was set in stone, even if his path was decided by someone else, even if¡­ ¡°Hey, Archmage, I didn¡¯t hear no bell, so get your ass back here.¡± Chapter 146. The weight of your sins ¡°But before that, make sure you say Lothrigern. He needs to have his name spoken in order to be able to arrive, after all.¡± ¡­ Back to the Tales of Creation, there was written how the different gods had made their believers, each one using part of the Authority over which they ruled, and a material they were close to. Paraiso making humans from clay. Idhir making humans from iron. Mirel making humans from ice. Dodon making humans from seafoam. Ihilia making humans from sand. And Arhontissa making humans from wood. That wasn¡¯t a myth, nor some exaggerated tale, even when it happened more than thousand years ago, and, even when the original humans were long dead, their descendants had less of the materials and were more mixed, that fact remained a reality. And so, it affected every human and mage in some way, down to their very core, tangled into their existence. A small, microscopic shard of a divine blessing, a remnant of the past. So, the act of changing faiths, beliefs, and choosing to follow another god was way more complicated than simply changing prayers. Here, four gods roamed the earth, shaping it into their whims. With all that power, it was evident that they didn¡¯t take kindly to any sort of betrayal from their followers. Velvet knew of Nebura, who had done so, becoming a follower of Arhontissa, getting away without visible repercussions because Dodon was long dead. Visible, as a big key word. Maybe nothing happened to her, aside from Velvet¡¯s harassment (which she was doing as a revenge for Madam Dorna, not Dodon), but it wasn¡¯t a safe procedure. But, all of this was to explain how easily it would be for a deity to harm that shard directly, to make a human, a mage¡¯s existence regress back into being a material. Erin Cardomos'' half face was frozen into frostbite, grayish in color, so hard it looked more like stone than ice. That was a mark from betraying Mirel, the biggest incognito surrounding him, of how he had survived doing so. When she mentioned that, she really meant it. There were no more cases of a human betraying a living god and living to tell the tale. None. But, as incredible as that feat had been back then, a look at him told Velvet all she needed to know. He had survived doing so once, but not twice. Arhontissa hadn¡¯t put all her trust into the mages accompanying Dianthus, nor into Dianthus himself. A deity¡¯s strongest card was always themself. And, if the mages failed, if Dianthus failed, if the Queen failed, what remained? For something as important as a prophesied savior, would a god cut corners over its ownership? Of course not. And, when everything else fails, what is a better failsafe than a divine curse? To be unmade by the hands that shaped. Even when Arhontissa wasn''t Erin Cardamomos¡¯ god, she could still touch that shard. No, not could, she had already touched it, the roots crawling under his skin slowly growing in size and quantity. A certain death, the Prophet wasn¡¯t mistaken about that. Suddenly she cleared her throat, giving him a smile. ¡°Oh. Where are my manners?¡± She said, making a well-practiced curtsy. ¡°Velvet Consestella Dobastro, knowledge mage under Ceres.¡± Not being sure of the relation between Erin and the Mergifari, she refrained from using titles. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. ¡°And murderer of fourteen lives. All of them mages.¡± Was his response, short and dry. Velvet flinched, taken aback. Was this the passive ability of retribution mages? No wonder it was so useful for Inquisitors. One of her murders was Cornelius, the others being the thirteen mages that had merged into a flesh portal to summon Frenese. So he hadn¡¯t counted Nathaniel, but, since he had been brain dead, puppeteered by Siberina¡¯s demon when she killed him, it made sense. And it was good that it didn¡¯t count. A mage that had killed humans was the usual target for the Inquisition. A mage that killed other mages¡­ not so much. You can take a mage out of the Inquisition, but not the inquisitor out of a mage. She thought, keeping track of any sudden movements coming from Cardomos. Even when cursed and dying, he was still an Archmage, one she couldn¡¯t hope to defeat in combat. That didn¡¯t mean she would just surrender and die if things took a wrong turn suddenly. If Cardomos tried to kill her, she would open Frenese¡¯s Book, and call Lothrigern. ¡°Yes.¡± She admitted, without trying to justify or defend herself, just confirming the facts. ¡°How did you enter?¡± The colorful glass shards moving around her had not disappeared, instead dimming considerably. Cardomos can¡¯t possibly be worried about me attacking him, so this spell must do something else. Probably a lie detector. He is worried about someone using the same path as I did. So, whatever he is doing with Dianthus is not over yet. ¡°Lothrigern brought me.¡± She wanted to appear smug, even more when Cardomos squinted upon hearing that. You¡¯re dying soon, let me brag about Lothrigern a little. ¡°And the Prophet sent me.¡± It wasn¡¯t like she could keep that hidden, and, clarifying that she wasn¡¯t with Arhontissa was probably better than remaining silent. Cardomos raised one hand, caressing his short stub, where several gray hairs were mixed. He didn¡¯t say anything, but Velvet saw how the formation covering the pocket dimension changed, its symbols, sigils and magic circles spinning and moving around, searching for any opening. The time inside the pocket dimension changed, from day to night to dawn, all in seconds, as the Archmage rearranged the space. Velvet looked around the whole time, memorizing all the formation layers possible. It was not every day that one could see the whole skeleton of a pocket dimension, and she was no slacker. Slowly, all the layers started blending together, growing into a morning sky. He really did not believe the Lothrigern part. Velvet waited politely, her hands resting together on her skirt. How much time remaining does he have? It can¡¯t be more than three days. She tensed up when Cardomos fixed his gaze on her, getting ready to speak. ¡°Is your presence here requested by the Prophet?¡± ¡°Yes, it told me that-¡± ¡°I care not for its prophecies.¡± Cardomos raised his hand, cutting her sharply, ¡°... Yet its voice is her voice, muddled as it may be. So I will listen.¡± Velvet had almost sighed in relief when he continued. ¡°But that changes little. Since you are in my presence, you must first pass judgement.¡± The sudden smoke coming from Erin Cardomos¡¯ hand, no, Esca, swirled upon his palm, taking shape. Velvet flinched, intending to summon Frenese, but Hyde¡¯s voice made her stop. ¡°Don¡¯t. You can pass his trial. You already defeated them once, didn¡¯t you?¡± The swirl took shape, into a pair of weighing scales, small enough to fit into Cardomos¡¯ hand. He grabbed it by the top, activating his Embodiment. ¡°Grudge of the fallen. Ephalses.¡± She felt a tug on her chest, deep into her heart, pulling something out. Then, a heart took position inside one of the scales, breaking the equilibrium and lowering one side. ¡°I call forth the accusation.¡± On the empty side, blood started appearing, filling the plate until spilling, down into the ground, with more and more and more, a constant red waterfall that gave no signs of stopping. How big were her sins? Could she confront the grudge of the dead under her own hand? The blood started bulging, piling up into shapes. Fourteen lives, fourteen corpses. Thirteen of whom were a tangled mess when she found them, and remained one when she killed them. Thirteen whose grudge was also a tangled mess, of limbs, of faces, of flesh. And, one more human, with long golden hair, and noble air. One whose head she had shot, pulling the trigger when his back was turned. Fourteen people she had killed, and fourteen that she would kill again. Chapter 147. Crafty, even in death Cornelius Graham remained a small incognite in Velvet¡¯s mind. Of course, back then, she had other things in mind, and, of course, back then, she couldn¡¯t do an autopsy of his body, nor did she have any idea of what she should be looking for. Why was his Esca still not fully open, despite being a noble, having access to vast knowledge from birth? That one had already been partly answered by Nebura. ¡°Deityless¡± mages had a more difficult time dealing with their Esca. Which didn¡¯t seem like a problem for Siberina, though. Not that that was a concern for now. But what she suspected the most was that Cornelius never was a selected for the Mergifari. A deduction that came for the lack of high ranking, first born or family successors, noble novices. Like Syon, who was an Idhirian prince, caught in a bit of a crossfire between a possible royal succession. But, Syon was an exception for the same reasons, not a rule. And much less a ruler. And Ethra, Cornelius¡¯ brother, got caught in the middle. If Velvet had killed Cornelius sooner, then he wouldn¡¯t have gone to the Mergifari, staying at home. But, what happened was that his death was too sudden, and Adeline Graham couldn¡¯t change things without looking desperate and panicky, which wasn¡¯t an ideal look in her situation, resorting to let Ethra continue towards the Mergifari. What an unlucky family. Or, that¡¯s what she would like to think, if she didn¡¯t know better, and, if the messed up Frenese summon hadn¡¯t been a thing. Sometimes things happened by luck, good or bad, yes, but too many coincidences made things look more planned than a simple coin toss of fate. Siberina had planned to kill Cornelius before she met Velvet. Her presence only changed the how and the why, but not the when. There remained too many holes for her to really deduce it completely, and she wasn¡¯t in a hurry to meet the head of the Graham family, nor the Ropperti¡¯s. Ethra and Alrai might have known something, especially the latter, but she doubted it. Plus, her only way to make Ethra speak was forcing it out of him, which probably would just worsen their more than bad relationship. Not that she minded, but, with a big part of Arhontissian novice mages having beef with her, there was a thing as poking too many hornet¡¯s nests at the same time. Maybe Alrai was more talkative, and she doubted he was still mad for losing. That loss saved his life, so he should be grateful. She mused, her attention going back to the blood recreations. She had waited until the scales stopped bleeding, the thirteen novice mages forming a ring ending their formation. Velvet wasn¡¯t worried about them. Unless one was a witch, magic needed a clear mind and intent to be useful, which they lacked. And, since the real version had been unable to fall into corruption, even when the state of their minds was more than broken in some cases, it should be impossible for the recreation to become a witch. As much, they could be annoying to keep in check while dealing with Cornelius, and she didn¡¯t know if his Orders would work on them. Could he even Order someone so deep into their pain that communication was hardly possible? Velvet herself had only been able to communicate with Vina, and that was because she had the Tarius bloodline, the same one that sealed Frenese. The others were just barely aware, yet unable to converse to her, only babbling in simple words. Speaking of Vina¡¯s recreation, or, at least of her face, its eyes were closed, a big contrast compared to Cornelius¡¯, which, even with the pride mage composed face, were completely red, aside from the black dot forming the pupil, blood dripping from them like tears. And he was looking straight to her. You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. Which was fine when she was at the start of her journey, and didn''t know many things. Now, like with most knowledge mages, making eye contact was a way of transmitting information, even if it was deeply corrupting, as the formation holding the Chained Man hostage was. So, once their eyes met, Velvet overloaded Cornelius¡¯ brain with knowledge. He groaned, holding his head and averting his eyes, breaking the connection, the moment that Velvet used to throw three of the chaining charms towards the ring of flesh, targeting the faces with more blood. The portal was unable to move, so chaining it was just for distraction. Unlike information mages, mages without skills to record details would forget them with time, the more complex the information sent was, the less time they would need. Cornelius was already recovering, now a thin metal line covering his eyes. But she already expected that. Her plan wasn¡¯t killing Cornelius with a mental collapse, but gaining some seconds to build distance. Like when fighting Nebura and Ethra, she wasn¡¯t going for close combat, yet, thanks to Dianthus flattening the surroundings, she couldn¡¯t also hide behind a three, instead choosing to climb on top of her broom and fly further away. She remembered Cornelius¡¯ fighting style. Against her, he had used some knives, but, against Siberina, he used a whip made of bones. There was also the metal armor he possessed, that could tank explosions. The leash was the biggest problem, since it was an offensive magical artifact, but, as long as Velvet was out of its range, it was avoidable. Thin, silver-like lines shot towards her, that she stopped by blowing them to pieces, spending two more charms. They were like knives, but their blades were twisted in a spiral. From the explosion¡¯s smoke, six long vines popped out, dashing towards her from different directions. Spaced just enough so that I¡¯m only able to take down one per charm¡­ Right, we did get information about them, so they also got info about us. Too bad Frenese made all their preparations useless. Without their magic being directed towards his book, they can use it¡­ Making a quick change of plans, Velvet maneuvered between the vines, trying to not get too surrounded. Of the fourteen mages, there were two of the Lust Paradigm, and- A vine slammed way too close to her, making her waste a charm into blowing it up. They are slightly faster than me. Readying two charms, one for each lust mage, she flew to the side. ¡°Careful with your left.¡± Hyde said. She moved her body instantly, a sharp pain crossing her arm. The wound wasn¡¯t deep, not as deep as it could¡¯ve been. I didn¡¯t see that attack, and Cornelius doesn¡¯t- Ah. Crafty even in death, aren¡¯t you? Not only the invisible knife, but the vines too. All six of them were exactly the same, down to the last detail. Remembering Vina¡¯s blood-less eyes, she made the connection. Both the vines and Vina¡¯s face were illusions. It wasn¡¯t a lust spell, but a delusion one. Well, thirteen connected brains think more than one, I¡¯ll give you that, but¡­ Grinning, Velvet plucked one of the black balls on her bracelet, letting it fall down. They don¡¯t run faster. A paper figurine appeared next to the small pearl, and exploded, breaking it. And a forest fell down, its second time, crashing against the ground, where the flesh ring made by the thirteen novice mages stood. Three of them being chained down wouldn¡¯t change the outcome, since none of them could move from the start. The Strangler Humming Figs, now mutated due to their previous release in a similar situation, their roots and leaves now a flesh-like color, started humming its dissonant song, yet Velvet was far away enough to be able to block it with two charms. Once it realizes there¡¯s no danger, it will calm down. Now, Cornelius¡­ huh. Flying down, she approached Cardomos, who was looking at the Strangler Humming Figs, an unreadable expression on his face, and not because half of it was frozen. He is not thinking about passing trial on the trees, no? Mages are quite unreasonable at times, so¡­ Stepping down from the broom, she looked up at him. ¡°So¡­ Cornel- my first murder, well¡­¡± ¡°He ran away.¡± No wonder Siberina chose a train to kill him. Even in death, he IS crafty. ¡°Do I need to like¡­ chase him down?¡± When he looked back at her, she confirmed her previous sentence. It really was an unreadable expression! Chapter 148. Like poking holes in folded pages Luckily for her, Cardomos deactivated his Embodiment, the scales spilling blood, and the spilled blood disappearing, going back into the Primeval Sea. It was her first time seeing the Primeval Water up close, from outside and under the ¡°sun¡±. It was translucent, but very dark in color, except when light shone upon it, which made it look kinda silvery. So, when it¡¯s not affected by an Esca, getting tainted on the Paradigm¡¯s color, it¡¯s plain gray? She thought, seeing the tides recede, taking the Embodiment with them. Doireann¡¯s Conceptualization was coloured, so pure Primeval Water is only visible on the Embodiment stage. Even so, for an Embodiment, it¡¯s kinda¡­ She didn¡¯t want to say weak, because depending on whom it was used against, it could be an absolute gamechanger, but¡­ Doireann¡¯s was better, in her opinion. And hers was still in the initial phase. Well, not better. Hers is also useless if she¡¯s alone. The Embodiment is like an ultimate attack, so the user mage¡¯s identity matters a lot. She hadn¡¯t let go of the idea of trying to make a Conceptualization herself, so she was very focused on the ones she saw. No wonder Tristan told her to wait. As of now, she didn¡¯t have anything to call an identity, magically speaking. Even if she badly wanted to. ¡°So I¡¯ve passed your judgment, no?¡± She asked Cardomos, once he finished closing off the spell. ¡°Indeed.¡± ¡°Do you do this to everyone that enters?¡± ¡°The duty of making mages face their own sins falls upon every Inquisitor.¡± That¡¯s a yes, just fancy. ¡°What about your selected?¡± Even when Cardomos was ¡®retired¡¯, he wasn¡¯t so in the past, having the same obligation as every other mage in the Mergifari. ¡°There are no exceptions.¡± ¡°... Well, there¡¯s plenty of novice mages who haven¡¯t killed anyone.¡± The vast majority hadn¡¯t, in fact. ¡°I only pick those who have.¡± How many novice mages did you harm doing that? ¡°Kinda like Irsen Kartal.¡± She muttered. Well, Kartal didn¡¯t Select novices with bloody Escas, instead recommending them to other mages, but once they became full-fledged mages, he offered them a position in the Scales of Poine. ¡°He was one of them.¡± Velvet opened her eyes slightly in surprise. Then, again, it wasn¡¯t that surprising. Kartal and Cardomos shared several similarities in their opinion towards mages, as far as Velvet could see. ¡°How did I compare to him?¡± Maintaining his composure, yet taking a small breath, Cardomos ignored her question. ¡°There¡¯s something else you should be asking.¡± ¡°R-right¡­¡± Getting ready, Velvet started speaking, fast and without stopping to breathe. ¡°So, in the Tales of Coris, it¡¯s depicted that you confronted the Harpan Army together with Dianz Coaltheno, yet in the Servendipy, there¡¯s no mention of that, and instead it says that the Harpan army fell fighting against the alliance made by Arhontissian and Charlampian mages, without any mention of you. It¡¯s been debated for a while, so, if you can tell me the truth¡­¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Ah! Of course I¡¯m not expecting you to remember something that happened hundreds of years ago, don¡¯t worry! I can quote both books completely by memory, and see if it rings a bell- Or maybe it¡¯s better if I quote only the chapters where it¡¯s mentioned? I can do both, so-¡± The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. Cardomos finally let his non-frozen eyebrow flinch. ¡°About the reason you are here.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Velvet''s mood deflated instantly. Yes, she hadn¡¯t forgotten about Dianthus, but she was more interested in the childhood ¡°antihero¡± currently in front of her. Even when he was older, and more scarred, Cardomos looked pretty similar to his depictions in books. Even in personality. In fact, he was more mellowed than when he was younger, which said a lot. And¡­ she still doubted being able to get his autograph. ¡°So¡­ where is Dianthus? The Chosen One.¡± She said, masking her disappointment by looking at the Humming Figs at the distance, now calmed down. ¡°On the Realm below this one.¡± He simply said, turning to the side, raising one hand. Like touching the surface of resting water, ripples formed in the air, a translucent picture forming itself, showing the exact scenery from Velvet¡¯s dreams, the one where she found Dianthus, where he hadn¡¯t destroyed everything. Massive vines filled with thorns forming a small, hostile path towards the depths of the pocket dimension, ignorant of their counterparts having been reduced to ash and dust. Velvet¡¯s breath got stuck on her chest, as she processed the information. Realms shouldn¡¯t be possible on pocket dimensions, not to say unsafe. A way to explain it would be: if the world was a book, then a pocket dimension would be ripping a piece of page off, folding and sticking it between two pages, one of which would be the page from where it was torn. And a Realm would be turning the page. It might look the same as the previous page, but, if one started reading, the differences would show themselves, in some places more than others. For example, Hell. It was a Demonic Realm, one that Velvet had visited when she made a deal with Hyde, albeit shortly, only the start, and with the protection of the Father of Hell. Another one was the Fae Realm, the one where fairies resided, and from where Velvet called them. And, another one would be the Death Realm, where ghosts resided. There was more, but something that they shared was that rules worked differently for each one of them, were it be with the pass of time, gravity, survivability¡­ As long as one knew and respected the rules of each Realm, traversal was possible, but dangerous. In some places, there were even ¡°holes¡± between the pages, where the Realms merged, allowing passage to dangerous beings, just like the Unnamed Forest of the Mergifari, which was merged with Hell. So, for a pocket dimension to be connected with another Realm¡­ It would be like tearing pieces of two pages, and folding them together, with everything inside, which sounded doable in theory, but, when one remembered how unstable pocket dimensions could get, imagine that instability combined by merging rules from two or more different Realms. If time worked differently in two places on the formation, one side could accelerate and break down, losing its connection with the other side. That made any sort of pocket dimension with fairies impossible to build. And that was ignoring that, aside from the Material Realm, beings from other Realms knew magic, so, if they didn¡¯t like being folded inside a pocket dimension, they would break it down themselves. And, ignoring also that, Realms not only had rules, but also Rulers. Demons had Devils, for example Hyde, who was under the Devil of Knowledge, Ars Chryses, and like Frenese, who had been a Ruler in Hell before being sealed. Fairies were more varied, sometimes forming a Seelie or Unseelie Court, sometimes being under a King or Queen, and sometimes under Lothrigern himself. But they liked making pranks, so putting them inside a pocket dimension was like throwing a bomb. And, Death Realms were under Reapers. Velvet didn¡¯t have much information about those, only that they carried the souls ¡°stuck between pages¡± towards Purgatory. Or so Skugol had told her, and, since he was a follower of the Death Goddess, she chose to believe him. Deities could also possess their own realms, but that was debated. For something to be able to be called a Realm, it should possess some sort of ¡°natural life¡± on its own, not brought or made. Otherwise, it wasn¡¯t considered a real Realm, just some parallel space. But no, looking at what was in front of her, it was a Realm, not anything else. And looking she kept on doing, not that keen on entering. Her experience with Hell still raw in her mind, and, she didn¡¯t know which one- Well, the last question had a solution, no need to be so fatalistic. ¡°What Realm is this?¡± She asked, looking at Cardomos¡¯ back. Probably Hell? The Mergifari already touched it in some places, and, as long as one took down the Devil, it could be doable. He lowered his hand, not turning to face her. ¡°The Death one.¡± ¡°Inquisitors are enemies of the Death Acolites. Why would you¡­¡± No, not why, but how. There was no possible way that a Death Realm Ruler was in good grades with him. Or so she wanted to say, but Cardomos didn¡¯t wait anymore, entering the portal, which started closing. Running after him, Velvet also crossed that hole towards the next page. Chapter 149. Conclussions between mist Crossing from the Material Real to the Death Realm was like her heart stopped, falling into complete stillness. It wasn¡¯t cold, nor hot, the rays of light losing their color, encasing the Realm under a grayish aura. She wasn¡¯t completely in the unknown, as far as the Death Realm went, having spoken with Skugol several times, who, being a follower of the Goddess of Death, called forth his powers from this same place. The Death Realm under the Mergifari was lacking in human souls, and Skugol had complained about it, yet, that was normal. Mages didn¡¯t leave a soul behind after dying, and almost all the human population inside the Mergifari were mages. The ones who weren¡¯t¡­ probably weren¡¯t here by choice, and their souls were used in experiments, which in turn also prevented them from filling the Realm. But, the Death Realm not only existed to contain human souls, but plants and animals too. And, just like Skugol mentioned, the air here tasted sweet, just like the translucent, mist-like flowers that spawned over the ground and thorny vines. Not like Velvet could taste the ghost flowers, since her Paradigm didn¡¯t support her in manipulating or handling spirits, but she smelled the sugary air. It had a slight thickness to it, even when that made no sense, being just residual ghostly particles that she was breathing in. Those would be dangerous for a human, since they could affect the soul, but not for a mage, since their own Esca erased them. Even so, they were annoying to breathe, and the constant sweetness was slowly getting nauseatingly saccharine. Kinda explains why Skogul always smelled sweet, like his corpses¡­ I thought it was some product he used to conserve the bodies. Or some perfume to mask the smell of decay. Cardomos was nowhere to be seen, but the sound of rustling vines signaled the path he had taken, now closing off behind him. He must¡¯ve gone to rest. With a curse like that, I doubt he can be active for a long time. Mages were prideful, and someone like him, who wasn¡¯t only an Archmage, but an ex-Inquisitor, even more. It made sense that he avoided showing vulnerability, and in front of a mage nonetheless. He doesn¡¯t trust me, but the fact that I¡¯m here under the Director¡¯s orders means that he can¡¯t do much more than pass trial upon me, which he already did. Besides, she was sure that, if Cardomos was so unreasonable that he killed every mage that entered, the Prophet would¡¯ve searched for a way to make the Director bruteforce entry. Even if right now the Corruption of Fate was hiding the exact location of the pocket dimension, it probably wouldn¡¯t do the same if it guaranteed its removal. The feeling of something cold caressing the skin on her neck stopped her musings, as she jumped away. A floating figure, its shape made of gray mist, the upper part like a human silhouette, and the lower part extending in a dress-like fashion, gradually disappearing. Lacking in human souls didn¡¯t mean being completely devoid of them, with everything that so entailed. Wraiths, ghosts, poltergeists¡­ Fortunately, the Mergifari¡¯s isolation from other places meant that there was zero chance of her crossing big undead phenomena like the Wild Hunt, where ghosts of warriors and soldiers kept fighting their last battles, usually crossing into the Material Realm, especially on places where wars happened or were happening. Velvet knew about it because it was one of the many phenomena that happened across the Charlampian seas, forcing sailors to reroute their ship¡¯s courses. That didn¡¯t mean that she knew how to deal with ghosts; in fact, since they usually haunted places or objects, avoiding them was the way she had always done. Not only her, but most Charlampians, since they were used to the Whispering Sea being filled with ghosts. That¡¯s why when that mage working for the Tarius dropped a wraith and then a cursed mirror on her hut, she chose to remove and store them in containers, and not handle them directly. And then Skogul¡¯s presence had made her feel safe on that front, since most of her enemies were fellow mages that she could hurt by normal means, with the majority of them not employing undead. What Velvet wanted to say by that, was that she was a bad, unprepared match against most beings inside the Death Realm. Partly because of her Paradigm, partly because of her circumstances. Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Better be careful, then. The thing that touched her was a normal ghost. A lost soul, with something left to do from when it was alive, but pretty harmless otherwise. Taking another step away from it, she walked into the vine-made forest, following the path she remembered from her dream, listening in passing to the whispers coming from nowhere in particular, yet feeling as if the speaker was right behind her. Hyde called this language Nekromnisikakia, didn¡¯t he? The voice of the wronged dead. ¡°What are they saying?¡± She asked. It would be nice to know if something dangerous was lurking in the surroundings, after all. But then Hyde didn¡¯t answer her. ¡°Hyde?¡± Sending a slightly stronger signal, she poked him. ¡°... Hm? O-oh, yes, what did you say?¡± ¡°... If you don¡¯t want to act as a translator, teach me Nekromnisikakia.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that easy. It¡¯s a language based on emotions, not on words¡­ I can understand it because I¡¯m a demon, but you, as a knowledge mage, with a Paradigm branching from the Apathy, have a hard time understanding and processing others¡¯ feelings and emotions.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± Scratching the annoying goosebumps crawling up her neck, she continued. ¡°By the way, I got a scratch on my leg from before. Care to patch it up?¡± ¡°Sure.¡± The scrapping rustle over her hat told her that Hyde was out, climbing down, hanging by a thin, golden thread. ¡°Where did yo- Hey!¡± ¡°Gotcha.¡± Grabbing him like a crab, from behind, as to not get bitten, she caught the spider in her hand, looking at it. ¡°Well, well, well, look what the cat dragged out.¡± ¡°It certainly was no cat, for cats do have a semblance of cuteness over them.¡± ¡°Hahaha.¡± She laughed, the smile not fully reaching her eyes. ¡°Someone woke up and chose to be a jester, hm? Are the Ropertti¡¯s hiring? Is the Hell Circus in town? Tell me, what are you hiding now?¡± Watching how Hyde¡¯s eight eyes looked to the side, and then back at her, she squinted. ¡°Both mages and demons have their own secrets, and I deserve some privacy.¡± ¡°Do you now?¡± ¡°If you suspect me for being a fake, like what happened in the past, you can ask me anything you want to know, even your full name.¡± ¡°Anything?¡± ¡°Anything that I should know.¡± ¡°Seems fair.¡± She said, grinning. ¡°So, how did you know that I could pass Erin Cardomos¡¯ Embodiment?¡± Hyde didn''t hesitate. ¡°Same way you did, by listening to the Prophet¡¯s words, which you showed me. If Cardomos had instantly killed the intruding mages, the Prophet¡¯s orders would¡¯ve been different.¡± ¡°What a nice answer, did you come out with it prepared? You know what I mean. Killing is only one ending. Cardomos could have broken my Esca, or permanently injured me. If you were the Hyde I know, your instructions would¡¯ve been to first, get away from him, and then process once I saw what the spell did.¡± She didn¡¯t miss Hyde¡¯s flinch, yet continued. ¡°But, and, quoting you, ¡®Don¡¯t. You can pass his trial. You already defeated them once, didn¡¯t you?¡¯ as if you already knew what he was going to do.¡± ¡°And, if I remember your teachings correctly, which I do, mind you, down to the last, smallest, meaninglest detail, a knowledge mage never should act rashly. Information comes first, second and third. Aaaand, if I remember all of Madam Dorna¡¯s history classes, none of them mention Cardomos¡¯ Embodiment. I didn¡¯t even know what an Embodiment was back then, you see, history books don''t bother with that.¡± ¡°Now, I don''t think you suddenly acted rashly for the commitment to the bit. But instead, you already knew what the spell did from beforehand. We of the Knowledge Paradigm tend to act rashly when we know what to expect, r-i-g-h-t?¡± ¡°... You¡¯re enjoying playing detective a bit too much, aren''t you?¡± ¡°You have no idea, Iren Doyle wishes he were me. Now, stop interrupting.¡± ¡°I''d rather confess already.¡± ¡°No you don¡¯t. Shush. So, for you to know of his spell beforehand, someone who had already seen it should¡¯ve told you, but not me.¡± Raising the spider until it reached her face, Velvet continued. ¡°Our local sleeping beauty, Dianthus, is currently indisposed, so it can¡¯t be him. Cardomos likes demons as much as mages, which is not, so I doubt he invited you to a telepathic tea party.¡± Finally grabbing hold of a thin mental link, going from Hyde to the demon¡¯s pocket dimension, Velvet tugged at it, forcing a connection. ¡°That leaves our own uninvited guest to my mental tea party. Hello, Corruption.¡± Chapter 150. Hunted by a better chance For a mental link connecting with the Corruption of Fate, the thing making the Prophet twist and turn its brain, it felt so¡­ weak. When she made connections with Hyde and Frenese, she could feel their presence on the link¡¯s end, so, even if they were ignoring her, she knew they were there. But the same couldn¡¯t be said about the Corruption¡¯s link. It just kept going, barely detectable, with nothing on the other side, the link eventually escaping from her grasp. Like shouting to the void, knowing that something was listening, yet being unable to prove its existence. She had sent her message, yet there was no way to know if it had reached anything. The only proof of the Corruption¡¯s presence was the segment Hyde was holding onto, from where she had wormed her way in. ¡°Establishing mental links with unknown entities is a rash move.¡± A voice, one that she was unable to pinpoint the location from where it came, answered her. It didn¡¯t feel hostile, nor blurred, like the furry-handed Deriliam, yet there was something about it that disgusted her, down to her core. She examined that sensation, not feeling it normal, as if it was forced out from her. She found the culprit quickly, it being her own Esca. There was something about it trying to repel the Corruption¡¯s presence, down to a hostile degree, making her want to break the connection. Yet she pushed her disgust back with force, taking a deep breath and swallowing her desire to gag. ¡°I¡¯m assuming you aren¡¯t prideful enough to let some mockery doom us both.¡± Once again, she didn¡¯t feel her answer reach anything nor anyone, simply going forward down the mental link until losing its strength, weakening and disappearing. That explains why no one found out about the Corruption being linked with Dianthus beforehand, not even Arhontissa. If I didn¡¯t know it was already there, I wouldn¡¯t feel anything at all. Then, how did Cardomos know? That was the only question she had no answer for, not even a single conjecture or suspicion. The Prophet knew because of the holes made by it, but Cardomos wasn¡¯t omniscient in principle. He saw as far as his eyes went, and what his Esca allowed. As far as Velvet knew, which obviously wasn¡¯t the whole story. ¡°And,¡± She added. ¡°That you can¡¯t do anything so as to keep your presence well hidden.¡± If she was sure of something, it was that the Corruption didn¡¯t actively do things, and Dianthus was the one doing stuff. Because Dianthus did some random ass things sometimes, with zero explanation. Like, it wasn¡¯t that strange things happened around him, but that he actively caused them. So, if anything, the Corruption gave orders to him, and he followed them in his own manner. Now, were they cooperating? Or was the Corruption simply controlling him? No, if there was mind control, Arhontissa herself would¡¯ve sensed it. So, at the very least, they were allies. ¡°You smarty things are so tiring to deal with. You should look someplace other than your brain.¡± ¡°What?¡± The first you was plural, while the second one was singular, which put her in alert, making Velvet look around. She was not that dumb to just be ignoring the fact that she was in the Death Realm. Her paper figurines had been scattered around her since the moment she stepped into the Realm. And, aside from a few lost souls, she didn¡¯t feel anything else. ¡°You are being hunted.¡± Yet she didn¡¯t doubt those words, even when she couldn¡¯t prove them. The first reason why, was the use of the word ¡®hunted¡¯. It didn¡¯t mean that she crossing the being mentioned was a matter of chance, but that it was going after her on purpose. And, her paper figurines could be detected, and thus, avoided. Velvet continued walking as if nothing was wrong, so as to not alert the creature. The last thing she needed was for it to give chase. Her figurines could go as far as five hundred meters, but she had settled for two hundred. She had used five of them on Cardomos¡¯ trial, which left her with fifteen, ten of those being the ones circling her. This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. With the fairy dust used for their creation, she could call them back instantly, if the need arose. Yet, doing so right now would arouse suspicion, especially if the thing was keeping some of them in check. If she knew where it was, she could move the other paper figurines. ¡°Hyde, do you feel something?¡± Demons could sense stuff she couldn¡¯t, after all. ¡°No, it¡¯s probably too far away.¡± ¡°Southwest.¡± A voice cut in. It wasn¡¯t the Corruption¡¯s, but Frenese¡¯s. Why are you collaborating now? She was surprised, but the Devil answered quickly, almost anxious. ¡°From the Predator Paradigm.¡± Oh, so he was just hungry. Orrr not. ¡°You didn¡¯t eat the Gluttony mages inside the pocket dimension, why so interested now?¡± She remembered that the mages from that Paradigm, and derived from it, went insane, killing and eating other mages, not being eaten by Frenese. Nereus was one of them, after all. ¡°They fill more when they themselves are full.¡± ¡­ So it was hunger. ¡°Do I have your help to deal with it, then?¡± Silence followed, the Devil seemingly hesitating. He wasn¡¯t ignoring her like usual, and Velvet could feel the hunger coming from him, even from behind all the seals. He¡¯s probably thinking how big of a chance I have to confront that thing. Not that much, it seems. Yet Frenese clearly wanted to eat it, or he wouldn¡¯t hesitate that much. And she could bargain with that. If she managed to open the door of cooperation outside the deal once, the second time it would be easier. And, a low chance to hunt that thing back successfully wasn¡¯t no chance. So she could- ¡°Don¡¯t try to fight it.¡± When she was going to belittle it for ruining her opportunity to gain Frenese¡¯s trust, the Corruption continued. ¡°You will have your chance in the future.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°A better one.¡± Resigning herself, Velvet started thinking about how to shake the thing off her tracks. The Death Realm didn¡¯t have wind, so it wasn¡¯t following her scent. Yet, just in case, she used a spell to make two of her figurines smell like her, before sending them off. ¡°How is it tracking me?¡± She asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± The Corruption answered. ¡°What do you mean, you don¡¯t know? Aren¡¯t you seeing it?¡± ¡°I can see it, yes. I can also see it continuing after you.¡± Did that mean that The Corruption could see the present and the future of someone, but not what happened behind the scenes? Or was its vision limited? ¡°What does it look like?¡± ¡°Like a wolf with long, thin legs, hair short and black.¡± That didn¡¯t help, at all. There were plenty of wolf-like things, especially on the Gluttony Paradigm. Frenese was one of them, and so was Navros, Nereus¡¯ pet. ¡°Frenese, how do you detect prey?¡± ¡°By taste.¡± It made sense. Frenese not only had a triple mouth, connected by the corners, but mouths full of teeth all over his back. All of them had tongues, but not eyes or noses. Plus, the tendrils that worked as fur looked slimy, so the chance of those also being able to taste wasn¡¯t low. But Frenese was a Devil. Usually, demons and normal monsters weren¡¯t so¡­ extra. ¡°Is it doing anything to keep track of me? Like pressing its ear to the ground?¡± ¡°It¡¯s looking at you.¡± So it was a matter of sight. Overgrown vines everywhere made it impossible for it to simply have amazing eyesight, so it was more than that. It''s been chasing me for a while, which means that it doesn¡¯t eat things normally found here, like ghosts, so it probably eats living flesh. It needs a type of vision that lets it differentiate between a ghost and a living being. Ghosts can speak and make noise, and living dead might look like humans from far away, same as banshees. So, the thing that makes it easier to tell them apart is body heat. ¡°It has thermal vision.¡± She said, grabbing hold of the southwest paper figurines. ¡°So let¡¯s give a real feast to its eyes.¡± Several explosions followed, as she hoped that Cardomos didn¡¯t like his plants that much. Chapter 151. Compact dreams As she had mentioned previously, the Realms had different rules, which affected gravity, the passage of time, the distribution of space¡­ it even managed to affect the self, if one didn¡¯t possess the necessary protections, or knew what to look out for from beforehand. And, something that the Material and the Death Realm shared, that another one did not was, first, the distribution of space, and second, the passage of time. With the differing one being the Dream Realm, or, as to be more understandable, the vision Velvet had. That¡¯s to say, she knew how the path going to Dianthus looked like, same as to where he currently was, but not the time that would take to reach him. Time flowed freely on dreams, with seconds feeling like days, and hours feeling like seconds. And so, space was affected, either compressing or stretching as it saw fit. Still, a pocket dimension was a pocket dimension, and it couldn¡¯t be infinite in size, or even big enough for that to pose a problem. But, it did mean that she wouldn¡¯t reach Dianthus in minutes, and it would take her several hours of walking instead. She didn¡¯t want to use the broom to fly into the sky and see how much distance remained, since, if there was something ghosts excelled at, it was flying, and aerial combat wasn¡¯t something she had a lot of experience in, at least for now. But she used it to fly just above the ground, since it was faster, and the vines posed a less tripping hazard. And also because she had seen some rotten hands creeping from between the vines covering the ground, reaching towards her ankles. Everything here is dead and rotting, or dead and rotten, so rotten they¡¯re only here in spirit. And I¡¯m hungry, and I don¡¯t want to eat rotten food. No wonder that thing wanted to hunt me so badly, I would do so too! It wasn¡¯t like she would die of starvation, since she carried several pets in containers, and only had left behind the Strangling Humming Figs, which were inedible. Maybe I can try to eat some of the mermaid flesh that I took from Doireann. It was nicely conserved, and half of its body should be fish. Or maybe I can test the range of that freeloader. ¡°Hey, Corruption, find me something alive and easy to kill.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you reach Dianthus first?¡± ¡°Not for several hours, don¡¯t you see the distance between us?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°No? Why?¡± So it had blind points? Good to know. ¡°Dianthus was like a light in the darkness, one that now he turned off. I can¡¯t find the way back to him.¡± So that was the reason why Dianthus lost the link to the Corruption. Without its main anchor, it was a matter of time before it went astray, back to where it came from, like a badly tied up boat, being taken by the storm. The world wasn¡¯t a still being, and didn¡¯t wait for anyone to find its way back, no matter how lost. ¡°So you clinged at me¡­ well, at Hyde. How did you find us?¡± Was it something about the Chained Man? Did the Corruption see him? ¡°By the marks left behind by those beings you love to poke so much. Even for something like me, beings carrying those marks are like fireflies in the night.¡± Before Velvet had time to answer, it added. ¡°Fragile and short lived.¡± ¡°And what is a being like you?¡± Ignoring the last comment, she spoke. ¡°Don¡¯t you have any theories?¡± Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. ¡°I did at first. I thought you were one of those Primordial Devil things, or an old, ancient and abandoned god, but¡­¡± ¡°But?¡± ¡°You¡¯re too weak. And I¡¯m the one saying it. If I¡¯m a firefly, then you¡¯re a speck of dust.¡± Velvet had been trying to see where the mental link went every single time they communicated, but it was useless. There was nothing at the end of the Corruption. Nothing at all. In fact, calling it a speck of dust was being generous. ¡°You¡¯re right. There¡¯s no body for you to find, since there isn¡¯t a body to begin with. All clues you can follow will take you to the same conclusion.¡± ¡°That you don¡¯t exist.¡± ¡°Indeed.¡± It made no sense. Not only because the Prophet had seen the aftereffects of its intervention, but also because¡­ well, she was speaking to it right now. And not only her, Hyde and Frenese had done so too. So it wasn¡¯t that Velvet herself had lost it. And about the other reason¡­ ¡°What¡¯s Dianthus'' opinion?¡± ¡°He doesn¡¯t think too hard about it.¡± And I think he doesn¡¯t think too hard about a lot of things¡­ ¡°Well, what does he think you are?¡± ¡°Chosen One¡¯s aide. Extraordinary help for someone as extraordinary as him.¡± ¡­ The size of that ego is extraordinary, that¡¯s for sure. ¡°I mean, what does he call you?¡± ¡°Hey you.¡± ¡°... I mean,¡± She corrected herself. ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± Names served as identities, and they could help identify the origin of a being. ¡°I don¡¯t have one.¡± Nevermind. Of course, it could be lying, both in its relationship with Dianthus and in its name. She would have to wake him up and compare the answer to prove it. In her vision, the thing keeping Dianthus ¡®turned off¡¯ was either the coffin he was in, the translucid brambles crawling over him and the coffin, or the golden thing in his hands. With a sigh, she let the matter be. ¡°Say, how¡¯s the search for something fragile and short lived that I can eat going?¡± ¡°There¡¯s a river a bit to the left of the path you¡¯re taking. I can see fish there.¡± Fish? On the Death Realm? ¡­ Calling it a river was a bit far-fetched. There were ghosts in there! Mist-like silhouettes moved below the waters, pushed around by the currents, talking in dead tongues, sometimes a bit too close to the surface, allowing Velvet to see the reflection of the state they were in when they were killed. Yes, killed. She didn¡¯t see any ghost that had died under natural causes. But she did see fish. A trout, to be precise. Any Charlampian would know their fishes, knowledge mage or not. The Charlampian Archipelago was mostly known by its seas, but the islands had rivers too. Even so, they mostly used the fishes caught in the rivers for self-consumption, not sale, so that fact was not widely known by outsiders. Why are there trouts on the Death Realm? Did Cardomos put them here for him to eat? Archmage or not, he didn¡¯t live by photosynthesis, so food was a must. Velvet just had expected him to order takeout or something, not cook himself. Maybe takeout was also out of character for him. Could Cardomos work a grill? ¡°He looks like a skewer kinda cook.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Hyde asked, having heard her ramblings. He hadn¡¯t gone back into his pocket dimension, and was currently on her hat, looking around. ¡°That I¡¯m going to eat you, spider a la saut¨¦ style.¡± ¡°If you¡¯re that hungry, eat the All-purpose Worms.¡± ¡°Uhm, no. I need those to fatten you up before consumption.¡± ¡°If size is the problem, eat the fire salamander, it¡¯s getting chonky.¡± ¡°Uhm, no. I can put it in the fireplace and save coal money.¡± ¡°... Just get the trout already.¡± ¡°I know.¡± She wasn¡¯t going to fish with a normal pole in a ghost river, so she did it her favorite (since five seconds ago, she just got the idea) way. Once a trout was located, she teleported one of her paper figurines below it, before blasting it with a small explosion, shooting it out from the river and into the ground, coupled with a lot of water, and several wailing ghosts, both of which melted into the ground. She would cook and eat it on the way, since she didn¡¯t want to stay too long in one place. Chapter 152. To use what lurks within Igern took a deep breath, slowly sinking himself into one of the pools reserved for purification. Unlike the baths used by normal mages, the ones inside the palace of the pocket dimension belonging to the Queen of Arhontissa were simply too big to be considered baths, thus the name. More than three meters deep, and ten meters radius, the marble coated walls were imposing, with one for each mage living there. Space wasn¡¯t exactly a problem here. Neither was purifying on time. Since mages here were blessed by Arhontissa, their accumulation of miasma was severely slowed, taking several months to be needed. And, even more months for Igern, due to his circumstances as a half-human. Which was more of a problem than a blessing. And that was simply, because he had a need for the miasma¡¯s¡­ perks. Once he was at the water¡¯s end, he relaxed, opening his Esca. Black, rotten like dust spilled out, mixing with the water. It wasn¡¯t a big quantity, smaller compared to other mages, but, once again, only the human part of him generated miasma, and his purification was scheduled. But then, he broke one of magic¡¯s taboos. Using his Esca at the same time he was purifying it. Erasing the thin layer between his own residual miasma, and the one inhabiting the Primeval Sea. The previously small spill changed drastically, becoming more of a pitch black fountain, converging into a dark cloud under the water, one that started morphing into a human. One that stopped the room¡¯s light from reaching him, long hair freely flowing under the water, and long, slender fingers that went for his throat. The Miasma¡¯s silhouette shared an uncanny resemblance to Velvet. It had a twisted sense of humor, Igern had realized with the passage of time, yet it had enough awareness to push his buttons just hard enough to not break them, even if it tested the limits. If the Miasma had used Dianthus or that¡­ man as a shape, then Igern would¡¯ve been unable to control his urges to attack it. A Velvet shape¡­ it was annoying, and the twitching of his fingers proved his desire to summon a spear and stab her, but he could cope. He would cope, in fact. He needed the miasma¡¯s ¡°help¡±, after all. It pressed its ¡°hands¡± against his shoulders, pushing him down until his back hit the bottom of the pool, and then some more. Even when it was wearing Velvet¡¯s shape, the Miasma¡¯s desire to drown the mage was always there. Igern might be using it for something else, but that didn¡¯t change its nature. It wanted witches, not mages. Once it realized that he was already at the bottom, and no amount of pushing would change that, it began to slide its ¡°fingers¡± across his skin, moving from his shoulders to his neck, and then lower. For an outsider, the act might look intimate, but it was nothing of the sort. The Miasma¡¯s texture was grossing him out, and the caress was just a way for it to reach his Esca without stopping holding him down. His Esca was located in the middle of his chest, after all. An uncommon place for normal mages, but, for half-humans like him, Escas tended to open in uncommon places. The Miasma reached the edges of his Esca. The eye had more than three quarters open, which, for his age, was a big accomplishment, yet it was not enough. He needed more power, and the normal way worked way too slowly for his needs. So, he would use it. The ¡°thing¡± most mages were terrified of. Without warning, the Miasma dug its fingers into the Esca¡¯s eye, and Igern¡¯s whole body jerked, the stabbing pain coursing through his body and mind. Clenching his hands into fists, he fought the ingrained need of reacting by counterattacking, forcing them to remain put. His head jumped back, knocking against the pool¡¯s tiles, several bubbles filled with air escaping his lungs. The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. ¡­ He needed those, dammit. Cursing in his mind, he clenched his teeth, moving his tongue so as to not bite it. Or choke on it. And then, the Miasma started pulling the Esca¡¯s eyelids down. Unable to keep his fight or flight response under control no longer, Igern¡¯s fist shot up, crashing against the pool¡¯s wall with force, causing several cracks to grow and expand. The walls were reinforced, but a direct hit from a combat mage was too much, the impact shattering several tiles. Digging his fingers into the cracks, he used them to remain still, even when the stress from the situation was causing his body to run out fast of oxygen. But he needed to open his Esca a little bit more. Just a little bit. One tenth more would be enough. So he forced his body to remain down, waiting as the Miasma opened his Esca with tortuously slowness. Bit by bit, millimeter by millimeter. Just two seconds more, he could hold two seconds more. The Miasma¡¯s fingers dug deeper inside the eye, pulling it open a little more. Igern gasped between his teeth, swallowing a gulp of water, the rotting taste filling his mouth. He couldn¡¯t wait any longer. Igern released his hold on the wall, hitting the Miasma with full force, its shape deforming for a moment, undulating under the water movements, before it put itself together once again, just like dust. The Miasma smiled, its smile a hole devoid from the back substance, just like its eyes, as it grabbed hold of his shoulders again, pushing him down, intending to drown him. It had no emotions that he was aware of, so that smile was just an imitation of Velvet¡¯s. ¡­ Just that a bit more broad, and it lacked the fake cutesy and smugness that Velvet¡¯s had. ¡­ And he really needed to stop focusing on comparisons, especially since he was drowning. With his other hand, Igern pushed himself from the floor, kicking the Miasma¡¯s silhouette. His Esca was currently busted, the fact that he was in the middle of purifying it and the way the Miasma¡¯s fingers had dug into it put him in a precarious position, where using magic could severely damage him. So he needed to get out by only using brute force. Even if that meant he had to dig his nails into the walls and drag himself out. Rising until he was standing up at the pool¡¯s bottom, he jumped, grabbing the pool¡¯s edges with his hands. The Miasma moved, sliding under the water, until it hung on his back, its arms around his neck. For a bunch of dust, it was heavy, heavier than most things he had the displeasure of lifting. But he refused to let it drag him down. He wasn¡¯t dying now. Maybe in the future, once his objective was fulfilled, but not now. Digging his nails on the edge, to the point where they snapped, starting to bleed, he pulled his body up, climbing out bit by bit. The Miasma didn¡¯t do anything, aside from weighing him down, its face close to the back of his head, until it stopped smiling, opening its mouth to talk. Igern ignored its words, or, at least tried to. Something he had realized with time was that the more the Miasma manifested, the easier its words were to understand. They no longer were a garbled mess, but a simple sentence. A simple, and correct sentence. His head breached the surface of the water, splattering around. He coughed, gasping for air, pulling the remainder of his upper body out and crashing against the tiles. ¡­ He was too tired to be breathing face down, so, with one final push, he turned his body around, closing his eyes and taking deep breaths, fast at first, progressively getting slower. Raising his hand, he pressed two fingers against his lips, a smoker''s habit, even when he had no cigarette, only tasting the blood of his broken nails. But he did put a box just within reach for this exact moment, one that he grabbed close to where his head had ended, taking and lighting one cigarette that he proceeded to smoke, repeating the motion from before. The Queen was away from the Mergifari at this moment, so he was free to do so. Igern looked at the ceiling for a while, before moving his head to look at his Esca. The eye had been punctured by the Miasma¡¯s fingers, a bloody hole in the middle of his chest. A dark liquid slowly fell from it, painting the tiles. His Esca wasn¡¯t permanently broken, that wound was just a result of the Miasma¡¯s interference. It was temporary, even if deeply painful. He would be unable to use magic or do any sort of heavy (and not so heavy) exercise for a day, ideally two. That was not a problem, since Dianthus had been kidnapped, and most Arhontissian official mages were searching for clues, so no one really tried to bother him, not even Winter. Taking another long drag, Igern waited for his Esca to stop bleeding. Chapter 153. Melting in your sleep The strange edifice was the same as Velvet remembered from her dreams¡­ which is to say, it also was the same as the fake one that Cardomos had created to lure her out in the material realm. If something, the colors were duller, tainted due to the atmosphere of the Death Realm, which gave everything a grayish tone, including the gorgeous multicolor glass panels that covered the edifice¡¯s round windows. They still reflected the light in a mixed rainbow, but not as bright as before. The walls had segments covered with small but intricate ornaments, as if the stone had been carefully braided, while some others were perfectly flat, almost tempting Velvet to caress them, as to prove their softness. She didn¡¯t reach for the walls, anyway, but for the immense doors, made of wood. They had no handles, but also didn¡¯t have any sort of lock, simply remaining shut due to their own mass. Unlike the ones in her dream, and the ones in the illusion that she only managed to touch, these ones were heavier, and solid, their weight pushing back against Velvet¡¯s hands as she pressed against them. Yet they weren¡¯t out of reach from Velvet¡¯s strength, who slowly moved them back, opening them, showing the rows of benches, all of them perpendicular to the aisle in the middle, the one taking her to the altar at the back. And, at the altar, there was a coffin, one that she didn¡¯t need to be told who was holding. And, crawling around the coffin were the translucid brambles, almost glass-like, their innards pumping some sort of faint glow. Pure white flowers ran through the brambles, smaller than roses, with two thin and long petals dangling, different from all flowers Velvet had seen, which made her unable to pinpoint their name or family species. That was one of Velvet¡¯s prime suspects for Dianthus¡¯ current state, aside from the thing he was grabbing back in the dream, the one she didn¡¯t manage to see. The brambles looked¡­ wet, but also not, as if the ¡°glass¡± that made them was melted, even when they remained completely still on the outside. ¡°Do you know what those are?¡± She asked her companions. ¡°Hm? You mean the coffin?¡± Hyde said. ¡°No, the brambles. The vine-thingies around the coffin.¡± Silence followed for several seconds, before the demon spoke again. ¡°There are no vines there.¡± ¡°The ones like glass. Here.¡± She sent Hyde a thought containing what she was seeing right now, right in front of her. And Hyde answered by sending her another image, one without the vines. ¡°Yes, but what about the one I showed you?¡± It would be¡­ weird, if Hyde was unable to see them, but not impossible. Cardomos was an Inquisitor, he probably had spells to hide stuff from demons and the like. Yet Hyde¡¯s answer seemed to disagree. ¡°That¡¯s the one you showed me. I just made a copy.¡± Falling silent, Velvet took a long breath. ¡°Hey, you. Corruption. What do you see?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t see anything here, not the ¡®coffin¡¯, nor Dianthus.¡± The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. Right, it mentioned so before. ¡°They also were in the dream, so it¡¯s not new.¡± Approaching the coffin, Velvet described them. ¡°They look made from melted glass, with light inside, and they go towards the coffin¡­ no.¡± ¡°They come from the coffin, from under Dianthus.¡± Under was an understatement. Velvet was sure that the brambles were coming from Dianthus¡¯ back. And, speaking of the guy, he was indeed inside the coffin, a fact that remained unchanged, same as the thing on his hands being too covered for Velvet to make out what it was. The vines went under him, but, by the way they were positioned, it didn¡¯t look like they went below the coffin to who knows where. But she would need to flip him over to check the truth of that, and she wasn¡¯t really in love with the idea. And it wasn¡¯t like she could turn him around with an explosion like with the trout, since his immortality was kind of in a dubious state right now. Speaking of the trout, it had been tasty, but she liked eating while sitting, not while walking. ¡°Frenese?¡± Devils were of higher rank than demons, so maybe he could see it. He had collaborated a little bit before, so perhaps she could push it a bit further. ¡°You also can¡¯t see it?¡± A dry groan, the small annoyance that came from it unable to dampen Velvet¡¯s happiness to see the Devil collaborating for free rang in her mind. ¡°What makes you think you¡¯re seeing it all?¡± Frenese said, before adding. ¡°Maybe what you can see it¡¯s just a fragment.¡± That doesn¡¯t answer my question, but better not press him more. Even so, Frenese deflecting the question to humble Velvet didn¡¯t mean he was wrong, but the opposite. Just because she was seeing a bit more than them, didn¡¯t extemp her from the same thing. Maybe there was something more aside from the brambles, but none of them could see it. So she stopped her advances, choosing to test the terrain beforehand. Velvet sent a paper figurine to touch the vines, cutting her connection with it the instant before it collided with the things. The memory of the time Cornelius attacked her just by catching her paper figurine, exploiting the link between them, was a constant reminder of being careful with who touched her papers. And she couldn¡¯t exactly blow them up if something went wrong, not without harming Dianthus. But the paper figurine trespassed the brambles without issue. It didn¡¯t collide with them, as if nothing was there. Then, once it finally reached the floor and rested there, it started convulsing. From the paper thin figurine¡¯s frame, bulges began growing across it, inflating its shape. Like malignant tumors, they expanded, colliding and merging inside the figurine, increasing its thickness from within. In just a few seconds, the paper figurine had morphed into an uneven mass, like bread dough, full of clumps. Once it looked about to pop, its colors started changing, from the dirty white of paper to a faint green. Just like the one from plant sprouts. And then, the colors became shapes, not undefined ones like before, but with a goal. They became leaves, stems and roots, sprouting from what not long ago was a thin paper figurine, and even less long ago a white blob. And what now, was a small, alive baby tree. A small, alive juvenile tree. A small, alive, yo- Splat. Velvet stepped over the plant, crushing it, before grinding the sole of her boots against the ground, the mixture of the paper mass and the squished leaves splashing around her foot. It didn¡¯t move anymore after that. That is, until Velvet used another paper figurine to pick some of the mixture, and drop it onto one of the brambles again. And again, the small drop started convulsing and bulging, increasing in size, until it was back again to the original size of the small tree sprout. And, once again, Velvet stepped on it, destroying it. This time, for good. From a simple particle of the tree used to make the paper forming my figurines, to the original thing. From a complete dead thing, to a living one, healthy and well. She examined the remains, both from the plants and from the ¡®dough¡¯. It didn¡¯t need to absorb nutrients, or wait for time, since it simply started going back as it had been on its own. And, as long as it touched those vines, that fact remained unchanged. Not even how big the remains were or how long it had been dead affected those abilities. It simply defied any sort of logic. ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± Hyde started, but Velvet interrupted him. ¡°Dianthus¡¯ regenerative powers and immortality¡­ are leaking.¡± Chapter 154. To fix eternity How to fix immortality? Was she supposed to put the brambles back into Dianthus? How? She wasn¡¯t going to touch them, that¡¯s for sure. Even with her gloves on, they would end up probably becoming a goat. ¡­ Would it be a fully living goat? With soul and everything? Or simply alive but in a catatonic state? What if she put Frenese¡¯s Book there? Would the seal become undone, releasing the Devil? They had a no harm pact, so Frenese wouldn¡¯t be able to attack her. But she didn¡¯t know what would happen if she put the book there, which would trigger the trying to harm each other part of their deal from her side. Which would evidently kill her. She could instead try to put other things, to see how far the leaked powers of Dianthus went. Velvet was a knowledge mage, first and foremost. ¡°What are you waiting for, wake Dianthus up.¡± Which her latest companion didn¡¯t seem to appreciate. ¡°How? Do you think I was born with the knowledge to fix¡­ whatever the hell is this?¡± She knelt on the floor, watching the vines up close. ¡°I can¡¯t see traces of any formation or spell on the things, nor can I touch them without them activating.¡± The lights inside kept moving slowly, but not even those had any symbols. Of course, if Dianthus¡¯ circumstances were so easy to replicate, he would have been part of a mage laboratory long ago. Raising herself from the ground, Velvet went to check her second possible culprit, sidestepping over the vines crawling across the floor. She was lucky they didn¡¯t move at all. Like normal brambles, they remained pretty still, even as she loomed over Dianthus¡¯ sleeping form, one hand on the coffin¡¯s edge and another holding her hair back, lest it touched the vines. By the way his hands were put, tightly locked around the thing, it looked like he had grabbed the object right before going down. It wasn¡¯t big per se, so his hands kept it hidden perfectly. Grabbing one thin, metallic tube from the crafting bundle that Harlan had sold her, she slid it between Dianthus¡¯ fingers, trying to pry them open. Damned combat mages, how are they so strong even after getting KO¡¯ed?! Nudging the metal piece a ¡°bit¡± harder, she fought against Dianthus¡¯ iron grip. He was breathing, so the grip wasn¡¯t the rigor mortis one, but the reflex type instead. Even so, she slowly managed to spread his fingers wide enough to take a peek. There, badly illuminated due to Dianthus¡¯ other fingers and hand shade, a black, short, hexagonal cylinder was inserted against the center of his chest, like a perfectly fitting jigsaw piece. Some red-like shapes moved across its surface, depicting word- A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡°Mn!¡± Velvet flinched, as a sharp, piercing pain blasted her mind the moment she read over one of the letters. It was an invasive pain, one that reached even the depths of her mind, yet she was unable to take her sight off it. Not because she didn¡¯t try or want to, but because she physically couldn''t. She couldn¡¯t move her eyes, nor her hands to block her eyesight. Then the letters started warping, twisting and changing, crawling across the cylinder, and then, abandoning it, moving towards her eyes. Whispers that she didn¡¯t understand started babbling into her ears, as a wet, metallic substance dripped down her neck. It was blood, coming from her ears. Velvet tried to force her body to move, but it was futile. In addition to that, the whispers didn¡¯t allow her to concentrate enough to force a loss of control by remembering the Chained Man¡¯s dream formation. ¡°... ve.¡± She could still call Lothigern, His name would be enough to shake her off. She could- ¡°Aw¡­ ay.¡± At the next moment, something pushed her backwards with force, throwing her across the floor, several meters from where the coffin was. Air escaped from her lungs as she hit the floor, yet she managed to cover the back of her head with her hands, preventing it from knocking against the tiles. She also curled her body, rolling through the ground instead of plainly slamming against it. As she rolled, her eyes met Dianthus¡¯ for an instant, who had awoken to push her back, probably due to the hexagonal cylinder activating outside his body. He reacted instantly, and, after kicking her, grabbed the object, which had started getting out of his chest, and stabbed himself with it, forcing it back into place, shutting the whispers down, and falling down into the coffin. Dianthus didn''t move anymore after that, remaining motionless and unresponsive like before. Velvet also remained motionless on the floor, eyes fixated on the ceiling, but because she was thinking, not fainted. And because a blow from a combat mage did fucking hurt, even if the motives were justifiable. She was lucky none of her ribs were broken, even when the pain made it feel as they were, and that she hadn¡¯t hit any of the brambles by accident. Not that she could¡¯ve done so, since they went back to Dianthus when he awoke, and came out when he fell. Which made the cylinder the definitive culprit. A culprit that almost killed her. Almost? Not really. She hadn¡¯t felt any threat to her life whatsoever. It had been painful, yes, but not the kind of pain that tried to end her life, but the kind that tried to transform her, similar to the miasma from the Primeval Sea. Similar but not the same, since she didn¡¯t feel belonging to the place from where the cylinder originated. With the miasma, it was like being on the coast at night, steps inside the water, as something called at her from below the waves, from the depths of the sea. She could always take steps forward, following the voice. Hoping that the next time she moved her foot forward, there would be sand. Because the other option was for the next step to be devoid of any support, sinking her into the abyss. But that was the miasma, not the cylinder. With the cylinder, it felt like¡­ Like¡­ Like the stars themselves were calling for her. That¡¯s to say, an unreachable call. Even more so now that she was still laying on the ground, contemplating life. Her own life, since this was the Death Realm, and thus, contemplating other¡¯s life was a bit more complicated. She might¡¯ve remained in that position for a minute too long, since, eventually, in the back of her mind, she felt something small touch her hair. Right, my hat flew off¡­ ¡°Velvet.¡± Velvet blinked slowly, looking up, her two eyes meeting Hyde¡¯s eight ones. The demon, who had gotten out of his pocket dimension, had crawled across the floor, and had climbed from her hair to her forehead, was prickling at her skin with his tiny, sharp legs. ¡°You look so weird from below¡­ wait, you DO have teeth.¡± Hyde took several steps back, hiding his body from Velvet¡¯s gaze. ¡°What are you planning?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t think for a moment that waking up Dianthus was going to be easy, so this falls within my expectations.¡± Cardomos wouldn¡¯t have gone through all the trouble of kidnapping Dianthus just for her to walk in like she owned the place and take him back. Either he was so weak that he would drop dead at the next second or he simply didn¡¯t consider Velvet a threat. And she pretty much vouched for the last reason. Cardomos was an Archmage, probably the second strongest mage after the Director at his peak. Not only had he no reason to consider her a threat, but he also had no reason to consider her at all. For him, Velvet and the trouts in the river had the same value. Maybe the trouts more than her, since at least they served as food. Yet trouts didn¡¯t wake up Chosen Ones. But, of course, Velvet thought, getting up from the floor and dusting off her dress, walking to pick her hat from the ground, trouts cannot walk and knock on your door. ¡°Let¡¯s go pay another visit to Cardomos.¡± Chapter 155. Three Hundred Years Apostasy ¡°Wake up, sleepyhead.¡± The sweet, feminine voice roused him from his stupor, eyes opening, blinking several times to clear the blur over his sight. It worked slightly, and only on the non-cursed side, but it allowed him to stare at his joined hands. What had he been doing? Before losing consciousness, that is. Right, praying. Cardomos took a deep breath, maintaining the air on his lungs several seconds before exhaling, a slight, small tremble taking over his breath momentarily. Correcting the position of his fingers, interlocked in front of his face, he closed his eyes back again, continuing with his prayers. ¡°Do you intend to keep going?¡± The woman spoke again, as Cardomos reopened his eyes. ¡°I can give you a quiet, painless end, as if your sleep went forever.¡± ¡°For an Inquisitor, there¡¯s never been an end more shameful than a peaceful one.¡± He didn¡¯t bother to face her. Her face was covered in a veil, after all. Not that it mattered. Veil or not, Cardomos could no longer focus on the details. If she were to show her face again, he would only see a blur. ¡°I am well aware of that. Yet, in those last moments¡­ most of you grieve over what could''ve been.¡± ¡°That only means they wasted those last seconds on pointless retrospection, instead of continuing fighting.¡± ¡°It¡¯s less than a second,¡± The woman corrected. ¡°Only lasting as long as your regrets need it to last.¡± ¡°Then I hold no need for it.¡± Cardomos gave the matter for finished, hearing the woman sigh, yet, instead of continuing with his prayers, he lifted his head, looking at the altar at the end of His temple, where His statue was. And next to it, propped up against the handrails separating the altar from the rest of the temple, was a figure. Cardomos¡¯ eyebrow twitched, clearly bothered by the woman¡¯s position, equal in standing to the statue. This temple wasn¡¯t made in her name. His prayers weren¡¯t for her. Yet he didn¡¯t voice his displeasure. It would be for naught, after all. ¡°She will be here soon.¡± ¡°True. With that¡­¡± She seemed to ponder about what to call Fate¡¯s Corruption for a moment. ¡°Reject¡¯s help, she will find this place in no time.¡± ¡°Do you plan to remain here?¡± ¡°Of course. Being surrounded by friends in your last moments it¡¯s a joy I won¡¯t deny you.¡± ¡­ Velvet found Erin Cardomos¡¯ location in no time. Not because it was close, but because the Corruption already knew where it was, and the fastest path to follow. She still didn¡¯t have a complete plan to deal with him. Hoping that he had dropped dead wouldn¡¯t work, since the Corruption already confirmed his living status. If things were to go awry, she would unchain Frenese. If they got awryer, she would call Lothrigern. That was as far as her foolproof plans went. Cardomos'' place (or what Velvet expected it to be his house, since it looked like another damn temple) was rather simple, in contrast to the place where he left Dianthus. What in that case was a colorful building, due to the windows and the imposing doors, was way less impressive in this one. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. The windows were smaller, the insides she could see, dark. There were no decorations or ornaments, just the barebones parts so that the building could function as one. It wasn¡¯t welcoming or appealing, yet, despite being so simply constructed, everything was being taken care of, and the house looked in a good state. The door was particularly well made, maybe the thing with the most effort behind. A door against which Velvet knocked before pushing open slightly. ¡°Hello.¡± Cardomos totally knew she was there, so it wouldn¡¯t hurt to show some politeness. But, after receiving several seconds of silence as answer, she opened the door a bit more, peeking inside. This time, there weren¡¯t rows of benches, just floor, empty, aside from the formation drawn over the floor. Velvet glazed at it for a second, not recognizing the symbols used, before looking up, towards the end. One single chair, Cardomos was seated, facing an altar, separated from him by a wooden handrail, where a woman was resting against. Velvet¡¯s eyes met hers, which, even when concealed behind a veil, stopped her in her tracks. The woman was gorgeous, a green, long silk dress with a cut on the side, exposing her legs. That was the only piece of cloth she wore, besides the veil covering her face. Yet that beauty remained as long as one took only a glance. As long as the memory was a short peek from the corner of the eye, nothing more. Her skin was immaculate, perfect in all aspects, but, when doing a double take, what was almost divine started to become¡­ marred. Going down her shoulders, the skin progressively lost its color, adopting a greenish tone, the one of rotting flesh. And that was at the forearm. Going lower, the skin and flesh opened in rotten tatters, leaving only skinless and fleshless skeletal fingers at the hands. Her legs were the same. From the perfect skin at the thighs, passing through the stages of decay, until only bone remained at the toes. Her neck possessed the same underlying green tone, but, due to the veil, her face remained hidden. It was the green of rot, of decay. It was the green of death. ¡°Hello.¡± The woman said back, welcoming her with a wave of her fleshless fingers. She moved with the elegance of a queen, where the shortest wave of hand caught all the attention, stopping trains of thought and conversations. Even the wooden handrails she was leaning against got temporarily promoted to throne, instead of diminishing her authority for a second. And Velvet didn¡¯t need to be told who it was, for gods didn¡¯t need introductions aside from their presence. She just knew, like any living being would know, deep into what shaped her, that she was in the presence of the Goddess of Death. And, even if that was the thing that caught her attention the most, it wasn¡¯t the most shocking. Because, on the altar at the end, there was a statue, one that didn¡¯t belong to any of the gods that ruled, or had ruled, over this world. Of that, she was absolutely sure. Because there was no one more familiar with the being depicted than her. For she saw the real thing every night. The statue felt amateurish, lacking the perfection that accompanied the true statues of gods, showing both the lack of skills behind the sculptor and the lack of divine inspiration. Yet, it was the details that made the intention work, and the statue lacked none of those. It was the Chained Man. ¡°You recognize Him.¡± Cardomos said, not turning to look at her, and not as a question, but as a fact. Not that Velvet rushing to deny the truth would change anything. A dying Archmage was still an Archmage, and lying to his face would be useless. ¡°And you pray to him.¡± She answered, also as a fact. It was the first time someone else other than her had proof of the Chained Man¡¯s existence. And not only proof, but prayed to him like a god. Yet all the questions she wanted to ask died in her throat. She simply remained silent, standing on the doorway, waiting for Cardomos to act first. Cardomos slowly got up, respectfully bowing towards the statue before turning around towards her, walking down the empty aisle until he stood at the formation¡¯s edge. It didn¡¯t take a genius to figure out now what the formation was for. For a devout close to death would only chase after one single thing. To be even closer to their god. ¡°Everything is ready.¡± He said, as the symbols and sigils on the formation started activating, lighting up and twisting around themselves. ¡°New Saintress of-¡± Cardomos said a name, one that Velvet was unable to process, as if her body refused to. ¡°We will begin once you form the link.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Velvet simply said, walking to position herself on the formation¡¯s center. This was what she wanted, yet, some part of her gave way to a strange emotion. Disappointment? Disgust? Jealousy? She couldn¡¯t exactly tell which one it was, but it filled her with a certain numbness towards the reveal. Yet she went along, because it was what she had wanted from the start. Right? Chapter 156. Hunter The air cracked, twisting in and over itself, shaping into a warped mess, into a portal, until a figure crossed over from the other side, which allowed it to reshape itself as it was before. Snow white straight hair, long enough to reach down her waist, dressed in an elegant but militar brown uniform, known for clashing with her Arhontissian peers'' fashion, much more colorful and fancy, asides from exceptions like Igern or Lox. The figure was Winter, Arhontissa¡¯s Queen bodyguard; teacher and supervisor of the Queen¡¯s selected. And the portal she had crossed now was the backdoor some Arhontissian mages had sneaked into the Raticheos family pocket dimension months ago. The Raticheos were one of the mages behind the unsealing of Frenese during the Opening, the ones previously on the Mergifari¡¯s side. They were also the responsibles behind the creation, shaping and maintenance of several pocket dimensions. After Dianthus¡¯ disappearance, they had gone silent, but Cheron¡¯s message to Lox made them try to reestablish contact, with their response raising flags. None of them answered, yet there were living signals inside of the pocket dimension. Clearly a trap, which was why Winter herself was the one entering. Now, she didn¡¯t know about the Raticheo¡¯s involvement on the Frenese¡¯s matter, or Arhontissa¡¯s own involvement until a day ago, since, if she had known about what would happen, she would¡¯ve been opposed to it. But that was exactly why no one told her. Her position was being a weapon, not a politician. The Queen¡¯s weapon, not her advisor. And that was what she preferred to be. To not need to think about the consequences of the consequences, instead simply focusing on pointing her gun at whoever she was told to. Even so, some of the novice mages that died back then were Arhontissian. Some were even her own selected. So she didn¡¯t pity the Raticheos. If they had been less greedy, if they had been more loyal to the Mergifari, most of the damage could¡¯ve been avoided. But their greed was not without reason, and, whoever didn¡¯t pick a side before all pretenses were dropped, would be caught between the crossfire. Because the Director would fall, and, once she did, all nations would extend their hands to reach, claw and tear all of her remains. No one dared to do so yet, but no mage, no matter how powerful, was immortal. And the Director was approaching her final years, the signs speaking by themselves. Her lack of public appearances, the mechanical way she behaved when she did appear, and¡­ the way she effortlessly dealt with anyone she felt like they crossed her. There had been incidents, previously, of the Director wiping mage families completely because they stepped out of line at the wrong moment. Moments when she listened to the Miasma¡¯s voice a little too long, reacting a little too impulsively. Those lapses in judgment happened to most mages, starting once they fully opened the second Esca, and only increased with time, never stopping, until the mage snapped. That¡¯s why most mage families only had one or two mages with two opened Escas, the heads, while the next in power were at one Esca opened and a second one at the limit, not crossing the threshold. But the Director was a unique case. Three opened Escas, which no one else had managed. And Winter pitied her. Not only the Director had lived through the deaths of the companions that helped her build the Mergifari, but she also would live to see it falling into another party''s hands, while only being partially conscious. Does she even care? She had asked the Queen once. Does it matter? The Queen had answered. Humans aren¡¯t supposed to reach the level of gods, and the Director is no more than the consequences of such hubris. No matter a mage¡¯s strength, nothing can compensate for the lack of a god¡¯s guidance. And Winter trusted her words with absolute confidence. Now, The Raticheos pocket dimension was quiet, not even the cries of animals breaking the silence. It wasn¡¯t like this the previous time she visited, when she went with the Queen to see the blueprints of the pocket dimension for the Queen¡¯s Selected. Since they were a family specialized in pocket dimensions, they bragged about it quite nicely, with not only day-night cycles, but different seasons, exotic animals who were difficult to raise outside their natural habitats, and which habitats usually collided between each other. Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. Exotic animals who were there no more. There¡¯s no blood, nor can I smell urine or anything that meant they were afraid. So, if they were killed, they didn¡¯t notice. Winter continued walking down the stone path, looking at the empty surroundings, but now she summoned two weapons, one in each hand. Two shotguns, clad in silver, with sigils engraved at the barrels. Those sigils weren¡¯t there because she wanted to, but because it was part of the special permit that allowed her to bring guns inside the Mergifari. They actually prevented her weapons from being fired unless one of these two conditions were met. One, the Queen¡¯s life was being actively threatened. Two, she wasn¡¯t in places owned by the Mergifari. That¡¯s to say, private pocket dimensions or the Unnamed Forest. The second condition was met. Winter reached the end of the stone path, facing the Raticheo¡¯s mansion. They built it quite far away from the entrance, so that visitors could see the full extent of the pocket dimension, and so, add more things to their own building plans. Still no one. The house looks undamaged, no signs of fighting anywhere. Yet she didn¡¯t get any closer. It was a trap, no need to straight up walk into it. ¡°First one is a warning.¡± Raising one of her shotguns, Winter opened the chamber with a single motion and only with the hand holding it. Then she pressed her thumb against the bullet, its aura changing, before closing the chamber with only a shake, pointing at the building. Doing these three things didn¡¯t take her half a second, and pressing the trigger didn¡¯t close the remaining gap. The shot quickly closed the distance to the house, hitting the mansion¡¯s front wall with a bang, an explosion that increased to unbearable levels in an instant. The impact was a sound wave, blasting the glass windows to smithereens, making the walls vibrate. She had her own methods to keep her bullet¡¯s effects away from herself, so she was unaffected, quickly recharging the next shot. ¡°The second one¡­¡± She stopped, hearing steps between the sounds of falling glass and broken walls. That wouldn¡¯t be possible for a human, nor for most mages, but it was for her. Around a meter and half in height¡­ and it''s dragging something. She changed the bullet, from ¡°warning¡± shots to lethal ones. The steps walked towards the now broken down door, grabbing the now useless handle and pushing it open, to which the door finally gave up, falling down. ¡°Oh, it broke.¡± Cheron said. Winter¡¯s hold on the triggers tightened, her gaze moving momentarily to what Cheron was dragging. It was a corps- no, it was breathing. Some crystal shards had stuck into its body as it was dragged around, bleeding across a line on the floor, but it¡­ he, was alive. And not only bleeding due to the glass cuts in his body, but the arm he now lacked. Arm that was in Cheron¡¯s hands, that she raised to her mouth, biting down into it. The crunch made clear that it went through tendon, bone and marrow, blood dripping down her chin as she munched, swallowing after some seconds. ¡°Hm¡­ I know yo-¡± ¡°What did you do to him?¡± Winter asked, pointing her shotgun at her. Deep into Cheron¡¯s eyes, she saw Hasdrubal¡¯s silhouette, sitting in his office, caressing his beard. ¡°It¡¯s not nice, interrupting people when they talk.¡± Cheron said, pulling the body a bit forward, next to her. ¡°But ignoring a question is also. Not. Nice.¡± She released the body, which fell with a thud to the ground, motionless. ¡°There¡¯s a part of the brain, one that only needs a little nibble to make them. Like. This.¡± So it wasn¡¯t fixable. Winter thought. ¡°They don''t rot or complain, and that makes them last longer. Like a¡­ a¡­ refri¡­ refri¡­¡± ¡°Refrigerator.¡± ¡°Yes! Re-fri-ge-ra-tor!¡± Click. Winter pulled the trigger, but, instead of blowing Cheron¡¯s head clean off, she shot upwards, towards the sky. Cheron didn¡¯t move, but her smile grew, showing her metallic teeth covered in blood. Before taking another bite from the arm. A wet thing dropped into Winter¡¯s face, red and with a metallic smell, but she paid it no mind, recharging. ¡°Second one is your last chance to leave.¡± ¡°What made you notice?¡± Cheron asked. ¡°I played my part perfectly.¡± ¡°You¡¯re a messy eater. And hate is very difficult to hide, even if it''s behind a hundred illusions.¡± Winter said, turning to the side. ¡°A good hunter doesn¡¯t need to see the tiger to know it¡¯s hunting him back.¡± ¡°Are you a good hunter?¡± ¡°The very best.¡± One, two, three¡­ Winter counted the mages hiding behind the illusions. Delusion mages could fake everything, from shapes to smells to voices. Cheron was very real, though, but not a threat to her. Sirius Tarius was the mage to her left, a hundred meters away. The one she shot on top of her was the second, the one that couldn¡¯t hide her hate. The Coatheno. The one whose son ripped out his own stomach during the Opening. The third one¡­ she didn¡¯t know, but it was behind her. Ten meters. She didn¡¯t need to know their names, for they didn¡¯t matter. ¡°My name¡¯s Winter. The Queen¡¯s Sword.¡± She announced, voice loud enough to reach the silent corners of the pocket dimension. ¡°We already know who you are.¡± Cheron said, the only one bothering to answer her. ¡°No you don¡¯t. If you did, you would¡¯ve brought an army.¡± Chapter 157. A bloody payback chance The grand formation kept lighting up slowly, the symbols covering not only the ground, but the walls and the ceiling, the red light glowing ominously. Velvet put a hand over her mouth, the palm against her chin, her mind working as she looked at the sigils. She wasn¡¯t as much in a hurry as one would expect, since a formation of such size needed a lot of magic to activate. Yet, she didn¡¯t know much about formations, since they were of no use to her, making her be rather slow at deciphering it. Formations couldn¡¯t be moved, and the powerful ones needed several mages to start working, which pushed their learning importance a bit towards the bottom of what Velvet had rushed to learn. What she knew was obtained from the formations she had seen in person, not in books. Looking down at her feet, at the formation¡¯s center, there was the same hexagonal black cylinder that was stuck on Dianthus¡¯ chest, just that this time it was stuck on the ground. You can skip the ¡®needing lots of mages¡¯ part by simply siphoning magic from Dianthus, hm. Yes, this part of the formation is like the one used to take Frenese¡¯s blood. It also was the one that Cardomos activated with his own magic, while the rest was being lit by the connection with the cylinder, using Dianthus¡¯ as a battery, working like the formation that released Frenese¡¯s seal did. Keeping Dianthus away while taking his power, instead of putting him here seems deliberate. He could react while unconscious, breaking down the formation. Not that it matters now. ¡°Velvet.¡± Hyde said, interrupting her thoughts. ¡°Shut up and help me compare these sigils with the dream ones, my head it¡¯s killing me.¡± If the formation was supposed to create a portal between the location of the Chained Man and the Death Realm in Cardomos¡¯ pocket dimension, it needed to pass through the formation that surrounded it, the one Velvet had triggered once by saying Andras¡¯ name. In the past, she had broken down the dream formation in pieces, storing them in memory packets, where they remained closed off from her brain, so as to prevent corruption. Yet right now, she was opening those packets one by one, comparing them to the symbols on Cardomos¡¯ formation, keeping the matching ones in her mind while locking once again the others. Before repeating the same process with the next packet. It wasn¡¯t as difficult as it sounded. After all, knowledge mages were made for work like this, analyzing and breaking down information on small pieces, so as to build an understanding of the composition behind its existence. They weren¡¯t fighters; Velvet could never hope to compete on brute force or agility against the likes of Igern or Drifa, same way that they couldn¡¯t match her on making and understanding the symbols and sigils that shaped charms and formations. But, even so, the material Velvet was working with right now was rather volatile on the mind, even when she was making sure of only keeping the necessary stuff. Her blood temperature kept on rising slowly, almost boiling, matching with the increasing red lights. A bead of sweat crawled down her face, sticking to her hair. She felt sick, almost feverish, but, with her time being limited, Velvet couldn¡¯t exactly take a break. At least Hyde was cooperating, filling some of the gaps on his own and sending them to Velvet. With his help, she was getting closer and closer to knowing the truth. That part belongs to the portal that needs to fit Cardomos. She could enter simply by falling asleep, so the portal didn¡¯t need to take her into consideration. Yet there¡¯s another two parts, aside from the one siphoning Dianthus¡¯ magic¡­ Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. One of those parts was even being activated before the portal, but wasn¡¯t doing anything, just filling up with magic, connecting to the last part, which wasn¡¯t active yet. And yet, she understood what that last part did. Velvet looked at Cardomos, who continued activating the formation, then at the sigils, how they lit up, moved and threaded between each other. She had finally figured the reason behind her unease and distrust at his words. ¡°A minu-¡± ¡°You don¡¯t need to lie.¡± She said, interrupting him¡­ something she regretted when Cardomos momentarily glanced at her. Or in her general direction, to be more specific. Well, Cardomos wasn¡¯t lying per se, his plan was to go with the Chained Man and die there, but, like every single fucking mage Velvet had met, they told only a small part of the truth, hiding the rest so deeply that the spoken truth could be considered a lie. The formation had a small ¡®return¡¯ portal included, not big enough to bring Cardomos back, which proved his decision to die there, but to return something. Yes, something, not someone. The size was too small to bring something bigger than Velvet¡¯s fist. And that¡¯s why there was a part of the formation storing magic. It needed to activate the return portal even when Cardomos wasn¡¯t there anymore. Cardomos kept silent, and she saw him squinting slightly, to which she quickly added. ¡°Not that I¡¯m opposed to what you want to do, but I¡¯d like to be told the truth. The whole truth.¡± For Velvet, any information she could get about the dream was a boat she was riding into, even if it was just proving that bringing stuff from the dream was possible¡­ as long as the stuff wasn¡¯t the pitch black worms once again. But then, those didn¡¯t need any portal to cross over. ¡°You¡¯ve never seen Him in the flesh, right?¡± She used the same tone Cardomos did when speaking about the Chained Man. ¡°Someone else told you about him.¡± Since Cardomos didn¡¯t deny the accusation, she continued. ¡°Honestly¡­ this temple looks awful, nothing like an ex-Inquisitor would make to pray, and that statue¡­ looks made by a five year old. If I was a god, I would feel insulted.¡± She looked to the sides, barely decorated. ¡°This temple lacks first-hand devotion, among many other things.¡± As if all the things used to represent the Chained Man were simply gotten from someone else. Someone not really into temples. She whispered that last part, but the Goddess of Death chuckled nonetheless, covering her grin behind her fingers, even when her mouth was already covered by the veil. Cardomos didn¡¯t find the comment as funny, though. ¡°Even if my devotion was born from gratitude towards a third party, I have followed my duties faithfully. I would discourage blaspheming against it.¡± Why is mocking your beliefs the only thing that makes you react¡­? ¡°What I¡¯m trying to say is, for who are you doing this? And for what end? You want to take something from Him, even when it will cost your life.¡± She let him understand that she knew what the formation was for, without saying it out loud. ¡­ It was how mages spoke, after all. Too much behind the lines. Did they hope for the listener to unravel what they truly meant? Even so, if she wanted an Archmage to take her seriously, she would need to speak like a real mage, not a novice. Cardomos took a deep breath, Velvet¡¯s words showing some effect. He hadn¡¯t stopped charging the formation for a second, even when its activation had slowed down at times. ¡°Flesh.¡± He finally said. ¡°To devour is to become.¡± ¡°Flesh for whom?¡± She asked, eyes fixated on Cardomos, tracking even the smallest of his movements. ¡°The First Saintress of-¡± Once again, the name got mangled on Velvet¡¯s mind, but this time, she found the culprit, it being the Corruption of Fate. Not that this was the best moment to confront its interference. ¡°And you are sure that His flesh would help her?¡± She didn¡¯t ask for her name, not wanting to ask the same thing twice, losing Cardomos faith in her skills. It had taken her to almost boil all her blood just to prove her power, and she wasn¡¯t going to mess it up now. She would find that First Saintress if everything went fine. After all, flesh didn¡¯t deliver itself. ¡°No. But if my life is the price for a chance to repay a debt written in blood, then I have no objections.¡± Chapter 158. Custodian of the deepest dream Once the formation storing magic was filled, it moved towards the zone Velvet was in, circling her several times, lighting her surroundings in a spiral, before starting to climb through her legs. Despite the red light, it was cold to the touch, giving her goosebumps under her clothes as it went up, towards her heart, circling at the center of her chest, the red light progressively darkening and thickening, becoming pitch black. Then it went further away from her in a straight line, a meter or so, before starting to accumulate in a floating sphere, its color so dark it began swallowing the surrounding light. And, behind what was happening outside her body, something dug inside, reaching the spot the Deriliam had touched before, deep inside her heart. And, she felt part of the magic going right in. Dianthus¡¯ magic. Velvet pressed her lips in a thin line, trying not to laugh or alert Cardomos. So now we¡¯re stealing from thieves? She wasn¡¯t complaining though, if she could store some of Dianthus power for later, she would do so. He had unlimited power, after all. It was like stealing buckets of water from the sea. And Cardomos had no way of knowing what she was doing, since this type of ritual couldn¡¯t be replicated in the past, thus giving him some idea of the time needed to activate the formation. It might just take a little longer, but anyway. The black sphere continued growing, swallowing the space around it, warping reality as it formed, as if the shape itself was crossing everything at once, and nothing at all. Apparently devoid of weight, Velvet felt inclined to touch it, as to see where it went, yet her common sense triumphed over her curiosity, making her remain still. Her only connection with it was the thin, frail, spiraling thread between them that was being absorbed like a ball of yarn. And then, the sphere overflowed. A single drop at first, falling into the ground, tainting the formation under, followed by another, and then another, a small stream devoid of light, sinking into a puddle below Velvet. She didn¡¯t move, and the black water didn¡¯t touch her, not even getting close enough to be a threat. No, it simply circled her, avoiding Velvet so as not even a single drop could splash her accidentally. Its movements were so deliberate, she started having guesses about the darkness having some sentience, or even life of its own. As the puddle grew, painting the formation in black, Cardomos remained still, situated at the edge, looking down. Then he took a step forward, his body being surrounded in a white light for an instant, becoming a silver, worn out armor that covered his whole body, including his face, right before stepping into the substance, the metallic boot sinking into the waters. By the sound and Cardomos¡¯ movements, Velvet deduced that the apparently weightless, thin liquid was extremely thick, sticking to his soles like glue. He even sank a bit, his stature going lower than it would be possible if the floor was¡­ well, doing its job. But instead, the puddle worked like quicksand, slowly swallowing his legs. And then, the chains came. Not the frail, weak ones Velvet summoned, but the ones from her dream, the immense, overwhelming ones. The ones that spoke, wrapping across Cardomos¡¯ leg, bending the silver plate under the strength of its grip, intending to crush his leg. Even more chains came out, grabbing his arms, neck and torso, the strain of its constriction making a screeching, metalling noise. Yet neither Cardomos, nor the Goddess of Death, who was watching from the sidelines, acted startled, reassuring Velvet. Cardomos simply grabbed the chain wrapped around his neck, the most dangerous one, and spoke. This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it ¡°Custodian, I know your name.¡± The scraping, strained sound stopped instantly, replaced by a pull that swallowed Cardomos whole into the black liquid. Velvet followed suit, just that not physically. Sitting on the ground she tested that the water did in fact move away from her, and thus, she laid down on the dirty floor, activating a sleeping charm, quickly falling asleep. The last thing she heard was a crash, but paid it no mind. If it was important, Hyde would wake her up. ¡­ As always, the dream was pitch black, the only visible thing being the Chained Man himself, deep into the darkness. Cardomos was nowhere to be seen, but that was probably because Velvet got there faster, not needing to be dragged down by the chains. And, speaking of the chains, Velvet felt them moving around, altered, the whole dream trembling. And then, the chains grabbed her, coiling around her wrist, just that, unlike Cardomos, who had the armor, the chains went under her skin, entering the flesh and wrapping the bones underneath, one of the chains even going between the radius and the ulna. It was all a dream, Velvet told herself. The wounds were fake, and the pain would be gone when she woke up. The only aftermath from that other time were the blobs of black mass resembling maggots coming from her skin and that was it. So she didn¡¯t think much about it, searching for traces of Cardomo- Something softer than the chains grabbed her hand, tugging at it. Softer as in, skin. Not the Chained Man¡¯s, and not Cardomos¡¯, who was wearing armor the last time she¡¯d seen him. No. Soft, warm and living skin, with fingers like hers, calling for her attention. So, Velvet looked down. Towards the second per- being that she had seen belonging to the dream, the thing behind, or, inside the chains. What Cardomos had called the Custodian. What Velvet had called the Chains. A woman that reminded Velvet of mermaids at night, the same ones coming out from the depths of the black sea, clutching the edges of ships with their delicate hands, the ones hiding claws, singing with their beautiful voices, the ones hiding teeth. Pale skin, long white hair that got lost inside the darkness, as if someone had stolen all the color from her. All the colors except the one in her eyes, completely red. Her lower body, the part Velvet could see, was formed by the chains, the same ones that blended into the dream, proving that she was part of it. When she opened her mouth, black liquid spilled down her chin, the same one that had covered Cardomos¡¯ formation. ¡°My name¡­ give me my name¡­¡± She recognized that face. It resembled the Priestess from her vision, the one that worked under a four-handed god. Resembled, not the same as hers. Maybe it was her sister, or mother, or daughter. She had no way of knowing, it depended on the timeline when it happened. But they were related, closely related, Velvet was sure of that. What she wasn¡¯t as sure of was her name. I wasn¡¯t the one who said that¡­ you got the wrong mage. Not like she dared to say so, at least, not as bluntly. ¡°The other mage is the one with your name, the armored one.¡± For a moment, the Custodian fell silent, but the chains connected to her moved, and with them, the whole dream. Even the formation that remained hidden between a True Name got affected, tainting the black dream in a red light. And then, a spot of silver appeared, dragged by chains. ¡°My name, my name¡­¡± The Custodian said, letting go of Velvet with incredible ease, the chains releasing her bones and flesh in an instant, as she sank back into the dream, repairing close to Cardomos. Velvet took two steps back, planning on remaining an observer, not a participant. She saw the chains around Cardomos tighten, trying to drag him down, but he didn¡¯t move. All the frailesness and age she had seen previously were gone, and what now stood before her was the real Ashen Arbiter. Yet the Custodian cared not for that, her upper body out of the void again. ¡°Give it back, my name¡­¡± Her hands grabbed Cardomos¡¯ legs, yet he ignored her, looking up. ¡°The one that took your name will come soon.¡± Velvet followed his gaze, up into the sky, before shutting her eyes at the next second, averting her face. Because the formation that she activated in the past, the one that almost killed her was untying itself. Not like a door being burned down, but a door which was opening because the owner arrived with the key. Andras Apolyon was coming into the dream. Chapter 159. He who never backs down on a promise Velvet should have woken up in the next moment. She really should¡¯ve done so. Yet she didn¡¯t, finding the danger worth the amount of information she could learn from this. Andras Apolyon didn¡¯t break the dream open, making a grand, exaggerated entrance like the other Deriliam had done. No, that would¡¯ve broken the seals, releasing the Chained Man, the complete opposite of His goal. Instead, His entrance was almost silent, only foreseen by the movements of the formation¡¯s red lights, the ones opening way for Him. Formations generally didn¡¯t make much noise, just a low humming sound as they activated, something this one shared, the only difference being the speed as it did so. What had taken Cardomos and her half an hour, and way smaller in size, took Andras less than five seconds. And, as He entered, no noise was made, no words were spoken. Andras had no intention of talking things out. Feeling the Deriliam¡¯s gaze moving across the space, making her skin tingle and twist, she took one single glance towards the shape on top of the dream, far away from her. Unlike the other two Velvet had met, the one with a thousand hands and Lothigern, Andras had no intention of holding back His presence, the sheer energy making Velvet see nothing more than a blur as she took a peek. Right before her vision got tainted red, warm liquid running down her face. She closed her eyes instantly, raising her hand to wipe the blood off, moving her sight away. She had seen something in the middle, but wasn¡¯t planning on blinding herself for it, instead moving to follow Cardomos¡¯ actions. Yet the resurgence of another voice distracted her momentarily. ¡°You¡­ you¡­¡± She heard the Custodian¡¯s raspy utterings from somewhere, low and stuttering at first, followed by a screech. ¡°You, you, YOU! GIVE IT BACK!¡± Then, the darkness of the dream, the one that had accompanied her every night, blocking her sight, hearing, voice and even taste, the one that seemed inshackable, unmovable, only reacting under the Deriliam¡¯s names, awoke. As if the ground on which the dream, the prison, was built started moving, like a beast waking from a slumber. No, not a slumber, it wasn¡¯t slow nor lethargic, the way in which the dream revolted. It was instantaneous, like a monster lunging at its ¡°prey¡±. In a single moment, Velvet got pushed forwards, rolling around the ¡°ground¡±, previously flat and now shattering, immense chains coming forth, each loop bigger than her own body. She wasn¡¯t their objective, yet that didn¡¯t mean that they made any effort to evade her. If anything, their size was the only reason they didn¡¯t simply stab her, crossing her flesh to reach the Deriliam. The Custodian screamed once again, a loud, piercing noise that made Velvet ears bleed, the warm, slippery liquid joining the blood from her eyes on her fingers as she touched her face, pushing herself up at the next second, moving away from the Custodian¡¯s voice. Because, as she expected, what followed was an impact that shook the whole dream again, crashing into the Custodian¡¯s location, cutting her scream short. And, what followed that was another series of impacts, smaller in size and power, crashing into different points in the dream. Yet those were different, coming after the sound of bells, which made Velvet look towards one of the impact zones. Moss had appeared into those, growing and expanding in an instant, even across the chains, coming from a pulsating lump, its size bigger than Velvet¡¯s hut. Several of those moss lumps had fallen across the dream ground, taking root into the dream and infecting it like parasites. And, up above, she saw Lothrigern¡¯s silhouette for an instant, before a sudden green light flashed and He disappeared, evading Andras second attack, which crashed against one of the lumps, corroding it¡¯s surface like acid, yet not penetrating deep enough to break it. Then, one by one, the lumps opened, blooming like flowers, as a swarm of locusts came out, invading the dream. No, not locusts, some of the bugs had arms and legs, and some had human sizes and bodies. They were fairies, an uncountable amount of them. And, between them, Lothigern appeared once again, facing Andras Apolyon, who she couldn¡¯t look directly at, but who answered by attacking. Velvet saw flashes of green jumping around, evading Andras attacks, which pulverized everything on their path, whether those were chains or fairies, both of whom were spawning endlessly, from the black, pitch darkness, or the moss-like growths, the green swarm covering the whole dream. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. Looking intermittently at the Deriliam¡¯s fight, she realized that Lothrigern could only teleport at the locations next to a fairy. He needs someone to say, or had said His name in order to appear next to them¡­ That must be the difference between Lothrigern Faeries and non-Lothrigern faeries. The latter hadn¡¯t said His name yet. That meant that Lothrigern couldn¡¯t appear in empty places¡­ and that he could pretty much spawn next to Velvet at any moment. She hoped it wasn¡¯t now, or in the next minutes, since, following Lothrigern¡¯s blinking teleports were Andras¡¯ attacks, and she doubted being able to evade or block those. What she didn¡¯t see was if Lothigern¡¯s attacks were doing anything to Andras. She couldn¡¯t look at Him directly without her eyes bleeding, but she didn¡¯t hear any sort of complaint or collision from His side. Not that Lotrhigern made any noise either, aside from the bells. Since the start, both Deriliams hadn¡¯t interchanged any words before starting to attack each other. Velvet kept on running through the chains, sidestepping around them. She didn¡¯t find any sort of order on Lothigern¡¯s teleports, but she noticed that He didn¡¯t teleport two consecutive times in the same zone. So, to evade Andras¡¯ impacts, she ran in the direction those same attacks happened once they died down, their after effects quickly replaced by growing chains. It was the first time she could ¡°move¡± inside the dream, feeling her surroundings change. All the living things Lothigern is putting in, and Cardomos¡¯ formation are blurring the line between dream and reality of this place. What was purely a dream before is now materializing. Velvet thought, looking at the dream¡¯s center. The Chained Man¡¯s shape was becoming less and less shrouded, giving Velvet details of his body previously unseen. None of which could currently help in her predicament. Andras attacks were fast and continuous, crashing down one after another, forcing Lothrigern to teleport constantly, making Velvet doubt the latter¡¯s possibilities of counterattacking. She knew that Andras was stronger on the Deriliam¡¯s hierarchy, yet she didn¡¯t expect the difference to be so¡­ overwhelming. Don¡¯t get her wrong, she could never hope to attain the speed at which Lothrigern acted, and, if Andras simply looked at her, she was as good as dead. Just like the tens of faeries that fell under each one of His attacks, unable to defend themselves, either being erased by taking His attack headfirst, or quickly having their bodies turned into dust by touching it. Into dust, or Miasma, Andras Apolyon magic being so corrupting none of them had any chance of stopping it, instead becoming magic waste. Yet fairies kept appearing, recovering their losses and even more. Velvet looked at the tumor-like growths. Deriliams were makers of life, so Lothrigern could continue creating faeries endlessly, keeping Andras busy. Yet a standstill was a standstill, even when Velvet was running around constantly, dodging chains and faeries alike. Cardomos is hiding, which means that he is waiting for something. Andras hasn¡¯t approached the Chained Man, even when that would make keeping him sealed easier, and instead is standing with a foot at the door He opened. Lothrigern hasn¡¯t approached him either, which means that the possibilities of something triggering upon close distance with the Chained Man are high. Is Cardomos waiting for them to misfire? ¡­ No, he wouldn¡¯t take such a gamble. Is he waiting for the Chained Man to react? They were causing quite the chaos, and he was still chained down, unresponsive. As Velvet pondered, a sudden tug to the side made her stumble, almost falling down. A chain was pulling at her, just that this one wasn¡¯t the Custodian¡¯s, but Velvet¡¯s. And she knew what was on the other side, pulling on it. Fur made by flesh tendrils, three heads, joined at the maw''s corners, and a wolf body towered over her, its six eyes looking down at Velvet¡¯s own two. ¡°I didn¡¯t call for you.¡± She said, her eyes opening slightly as she turned around, looking at her surroundings. From all over the dream, monster-like beings started crawling out, their sizes bigger than the fairies, even when less in number. A giant made of piled up stone statues of agonizing heads with an eye in the middle; a half-woman, half-spider of gray skin taller than Frenese; a burning man, flesh constantly charring like a lit pyre¡­ Devils. Andras chose to play the same game as Lothigern by using His creations, which meant¡­ Velvet checked her Deal with Frenese. The Devil¡¯s Deal was made under Andras Apolyon¡¯s name, so, if someone could undo it, it was the one currently on top of her, trying to kill all of them. Yet the Deal remained untouched. ¡°Why?¡± She asked in a low voice. Clearly Frenese had been dragged partially by Andras, yet his Deal with Velvet meant that he had to help her, which was against what Andras wanted by summoning the Devils. Helping Andras right now would mean trying to harm Velvet, which would kill him. Velvet hadn¡¯t tried to call him for the same reason. Trying to make Frenese go against his creator was equal as trying to harm him, which would kill her. And, since she didn¡¯t summon him, she couldn¡¯t send him back, putting Frenese in a tight spot. If Andras didn¡¯t remove the Deal, Frenese HAD to go against His wishes, unless He expected Frenese to simply give up and die. Yet Velvet stun got cut short by a crunching noise behind her, as Frenese ripped off one of the half-spider woman¡¯s legs, who had sneaked closer to them without Velvet noticing, making the Devil jump back. ¡°He would never erase a Pact, even if it meant betraying Him. Nor will He punish me for keeping my side of the Deal.¡± Frenese said, the ground and chains next to his feet becoming flesh, his own hell taking shape. ¡°Yet this counts as a petition.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Chapter 160. The difference between our sins As Frenese had said, there was no instant repercussion for his opposition, even when Velvet didn¡¯t know if Andras had noticed one of his Devils deserting, remaining still instead of attacking the fairy-sprouting tumors, unlike the other ones, who went to do just that. Aside from the half-woman spider, who appeared close to Frenese due to Velvet pulling on his summon, relocating him, the other Devils had appeared separated from each other. Devils are territorial by nature, with only one for each Hell Realm, so, if two summon their hell in the same place¡­ She didn¡¯t know what would happen, but, seeing that Frenese¡¯s hell had prevented the spider¡¯s from taking root, it probably was first come first served. The other Devils were summoning their own hells, but their expansion stopped once they collided one with another. Velvet moved behind Frenese, using him as a wall between the spider Devil and her. If her knowledge wasn¡¯t wrong, that Devil was Ars Chryses, the Knowledge Devil that owned the hell where Hyde resided. And she knew that Ars Chryses had noticed her, even as she backed off from them, away from Frenese¡¯s hell. Luckily for her, the place that should¡¯ve been occupied for Frenese was close, letting her settle down there, summoning a smaller hell than the rest, since some of it already had been claimed. The hell of a knowledge Devil started as a blue, inky sea, with pages swimming over it, filled with inscriptions; of spells, information or detailed drawings, Velvet didn¡¯t linger over them, unsure if looking was safe. Frenese was able to mentally break any mage from the Gluttony Paradigm or derived from it inside his hell, so the same could be applied for Ars Chryses. That was one of the main reasons why a mage needed to call for Andras Apolyon¡¯s protection before entering a Hell Realm. Something she couldn¡¯t exactly do at this time, since the Deriliam in question was above her, trying to kill them. At least He stopped attacking towards the ground, not planning on stomping over His own Devils, letting them start culling over the number of fairies. And, the introduction of Devils inside the dream had finally collapsed the threshold that prevented Velvet from accessing her Esca and, through it, the Primeval Sea, yet, since it was a dream, all her materials, papers and things weren¡¯t with her. She could still use her own skin, since the physical wounds taken on the dream didn¡¯t carry over, and it was a valid material for a knowledge mage. Some books and scrolls were made of animal or human skin, after all. But she wasn¡¯t at the point where needing to do so, at least for now. Velvet had another resource at her disposition first, the chains. Since Andras had knocked down the Custodian, the chain''s behavior had been erratic; continuing to target Him, yet missing their previous organization, the movements aimless. The Custodian could merge back into the dream to move around, having done so previously, which meant that Andras'' attack had probably sealed her somehow. No, not probably. For the first time in the dream, Velvet could feel the chain''s movements deep in her mind, exactly like when she first got her Esca, and started to feel the Primeval Sea¡¯s influence around her. So right now, she could feel the membrane separating her from the chain¡¯s control, one previously closed off completely due to the Custodian''s Authority over them. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. With a single push, she could break that barrier, obtaining control of the chains. But that was a risky gamble. The kind that could kill her if things went awry. The Custodian wasn¡¯t dead, Velvet could still feel her presence deep in the dream, and once she was free, she would retake her Authority, possibly retaliating against Velvet. And not only that. Until now, Andras hadn¡¯t paid attention nor targeted her, but if she claimed ownership of the chains, that would soon change. And, she had no hope of even defending herself for a second, were He to attack her. She had come into the dream as an observer. From the start, she had no intention of participating, nor confronting Andras or the Custodian. And, unlike the time when Frenese got unsealed and tried to eat them, she had choices. Exits. She didn¡¯t have the need of risking her own life for Cardomos, nor Lothrigern. She didn¡¯t have to remain there, being able to wake up if things got too complicated. From the start, she could¡¯ve run away. Knowledge mages weren¡¯t the kind that jumped onto a potential death if they knew that they had other choices. Hell, Velvet was the first that would escape, surrender or go along with someone else¡¯s wishes if doing so meant securing her future wellbeing. Something she had done several times by now. She could always try again later, as long as she lived. Winning or losing didn¡¯t matter as long as she could keep going. The Devils were efficient, constantly culling the no longer infinite number of fairies, even when some of the fairies fought back, their curses and spells slowing some of them. Yet the difference in power was evident, with each Devil being a realm ruler, and the fairies simply being more in number, not power. Velvet didn¡¯t doubt the existence of stronger fairies, but the ones here were simply to help Lothrigern teleport, not fight. And, stronger fairies weren¡¯t necessary for Him. With each blink, Lothrigern appeared next to the fairies closer to a Devil, killing them with no effort. Devils, rulers of Hell Realms, some of which were colossal in size, towering over her, got torn to shreds, insides turning inside out, flesh, stone, bones¡­ whatever material composed their bodies broken and bended as tree bark, with roots, branches and leaves being birthed from their bodies. Devils like Frenese, who were able to destroy mages with no effort, went down like feathers in the air, just by being close to the Deriliam. Lothrigern didn¡¯t even look at them, disappearing as soon as He appeared, uncaring. Devils of hundreds, thousands of years, falling like houses of cards. No, they even weren¡¯t allowed that, the trees born from them keeping their corpses standing, sculptures mocking Andras Apolyon. That was what happened to mages that summoned Him, what she¡¯d been warned about. But the Devils didn¡¯t falter. Even as roots grew from their bodies, even as they twisted, the cracking noise running through the dream, their lives ending, they continued slaughtering the fairies. ¡°They don¡¯t even flinch.¡± She told Frenese. ¡°Do Devils not feel pain or fear?¡± ¡°Is feeling pain or fear a crime? Does running away deserve a punishment? We Devils are the end of humanity¡¯s sins.¡± Frenese six eyed gaze fell on Velvet. ¡° I do not feel fear nor pain, only hunger. My only wish is to devour until nothing is left.¡± Velvet sighed, taking a deep breath. ¡°But don¡¯t forget, what separates a mage from a witch is the same thing that separates a Devil from a demon. You¡¯ve yet to reach the point where knowledge is the only thing guiding you.¡± She knew that, just like she knew that Frenese wasn¡¯t devouring the fairies and dying to Lothrigern like the other Devils because of her, of her and their pact. Frenese could die and not care, but she wanted to live. That by itself allowed fear to settle, the kind that only appeared when one could run away. ¡°Dammit.¡± She very much wanted to wake up, and yet¡­ ¡°Cover me.¡± Retreating into her mind, she reached for that membrane, feeling it push against her own mind at first, bending and stretching to its limit, before snapping, the silence of its destruction not matching how she felt about it. Even so, Velvet grabbed the chains, merging them into her mind, body and Esca. Chapter 161. Collapse Her body sank into the dream, expanding and contracting, her consciousness merging into the chains, making them part of her own body. Like an octopus, first numbingly and then clearer, tendrils extended through the void, senses of touch, of taste, of sound ingraining themselves into her brain. The moss tumors clutched around her, tangled into her chains, and different hells covered her new extremities, the varying sensations causing her no pain, only an overwhelming annoyance. And yet she didn¡¯t tone down those feelings. As a knowledge mage, listening and acknowledging all of them allowed her to map the dream, as if she was a spider, and her chains the webs. Sensing the fairies'' wings fluttering across the empty space, tickling her brain, splattering when they were crushed or destroyed. As her control went deeper, expanding itself through the interconnected chains, more and more sides of the dream were revealed to her. They didn¡¯t cross to the other side of Andras¡¯ formation, being contained into a bowl shape. That also meant that the chains¡¯ core was located mostly at the hemisphere south of the dream, and, from there, it climbed up, nailing the chains to the upper part. The chain¡¯s core, effectively, was the Custodian, currently seal- Velvet had not approached her, wary of whatever Andras had done to seal her, yet that had been not enough. A sharp stabbing pain hit her consciousness, nailing into her brain. Velvet collapsed onto her knees, coughing and puking blood. Flashing lights sparkled through her vision, even if her eyes were closed. She began cutting down the chains affected with¡­ that from her body, breaking the links before they got too close to her. Her body almost fell down completely, in a state of shock, but she had no time to worry about it, busy with the corroding chains. A single misstep meant that she would have no body to worry about, after all. And, she wasn¡¯t alone. Teeth dug into her waist, not breaking skin, yet deep enough to lift her from the ground without the chance of falling down. If she couldn¡¯t focus on her main body, she would put her trust in Frenese, or, more specifically, on their Pact. Through the chains, she could sense Frenese¡¯s direction as she broke some and kept others, moving the useful ones to stop and slow the pursuing Devils, even when Frenese moved across the zones with them dead. Andras hadn¡¯t realized it yet, and Velvet had to get her shit together before He did. The Devils were more perceptive, but they were on the same power level as Frenese, which made his behavior more noticeable for them. And, despite being a wolf, Frenese wasn¡¯t fast. Partially because he was carrying Velvet, and partially because the terrain kept shifting, wherever it was from colossal chains falling down as Velvet cut them out, Andras attacking Lothrigern or the different Hell Realms shifting. Frenese avoided the hells of living Devils, aided by Velvet through their mind connection. She felt the blood dripping down her nose, but, before being able to burn it to prevent a Devil channeling a curse, it got eaten. It was lost blood, anyway. Cut, cut, cut. Move Frenese to the left. Cut, cut, cut. It hurts. Cut, cut, cut¡­ The safe zones got smaller and smaller, the Devils having noticed too much and started closing them in. So, Velvet took them back to the start, where Frenese had laid down his own Realm. With another bloody cough, she patted the corner of Frenese¡¯s maw. ¡°Put¡­ put me down¡­¡± The Devil lowered his head, laying her down instead of dropping her, which she appreciated, taking deep breaths to recover the air she¡¯d been unable to get under the maw¡¯s pressure. She had managed to cut off all the infected chains, defeating the Deriliam¡¯s corrosion. Around sixty percent of them were now unusable, but she was alive and in control of the rest now. Velvet got up, stumbling, forced to lay against Frenese¡¯s slimy body to not fall down. How much blood had she lost? How much blood could she lose in a dream? Funnily enough, she had no physical wounds, all the blood having been lost by puking it, crying it, or having it fall down from her nose and ears while fighting the corrosion. Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. As much as she would¡¯ve loved to rest several seconds more against Frenese¡¯s wet, slimy fur tendrils, they now had caught Andras'' attention for real. Velvet was sure of that, her skin growing goosebumps intense enough to hurt. And that was only His gaze falling over them. A gaze Velvet didn¡¯t dare to match, yet one followed by an attack, this time, directed at them. So she mobilized all the possible chains, sparing no expense, just to stop it. But they were heavy, like a muscle she hadn¡¯t learned how to use yet, having no prior experience. That slugginess, coupled by the Devils digging their hells deeper to stop them, made the barrier way thinner than she planned to. Way too thin to stop a Deriliam¡¯s attack. Frenese¡¯s teeth clamped once again on her waist, ready to run, but Velvet stopped him. ¡°I¡¯ve stopped being an observer, so now it''s his turn.¡± The turn to keep his own promise. Before the attack fell down, colliding against them, a wall of gray, dirty light appeared, clashing against the attack, both of them breaking down into a million pieces, a rain of red and silver. In front of them was now Cardomos, clad in a cracking armor, one that slowly broke into shards, falling to the ground, now useless. What had been a magic artifact of the highest caliber, could only stop a single strike of the Deriliam, a strike that was already weakened because Andras didn¡¯t want to destroy the dream or His own Devils, but to get rid of them. And now, Deliriam and ex-Inquisitor faced each other, as Velvet saw the Cardomos under the armor. Before, half his body was petrified, due to Mirel¡¯s curse, with roots crawling under his skin, due to Arhontissa¡¯s curse. That was what Velvet could see, since he wore a long robe, almost priest-like. But now, that robe was gone, and Velvet could see Cardomos¡¯ Escas. Unlike her own Esca, who looked more like a tattoo unless she started accumulating miasma, Cardomos'' three eyes were alive, blinking and looking around, the iris a dull silver tone. One on each hand, and the third on the middle of his left forearm. Andras didn¡¯t send a follow up attack once the first got intercepted, and Velvet soon realized why, stabbing an approaching Devil and throwing it away from them and Cardomos. She didn¡¯t want to waste time in trying to kill a Devil, not wanting to spend all her chains into a single one when tens were waiting to strike. Cardomos folded down and coughed, a dark liquid coming from his mouth. How much time do you have? Minutes? Did she hesitate for too long? No, it wasn¡¯t that. Cardomos had long gone past his limit, and yet, here he was, facing down Andras Apolyon. It would¡¯ve been nice to say that Andras showed some emotion towards his perseverance, but He didn¡¯t, readying another attack. And it would¡¯ve been not nice to say that that was it, but it wasn¡¯t. Cardomos recovered his previous firm standing, no longer showing any of his previous vulnerability. And then, he looked up, met Andras'' gaze and began chanting. ¡°Mother of Witches, you who slumber at the bottom of the Primeval Sea, lay your thousand eyed gaze upon me.¡± ¡°Origin of madness, Sovereign of the Trifecta of Finality, Goddess of Despair.¡± ¡°Haashi Morgania. You who are the mother, the queen, the goddess and the creator. Hear me, answer me, look at me.¡± The Deriliam of mages and witches, Haashi Morgania, a name given to her by Frenese. The Trifecta of Finality, a name given to her by Skugol, referring to the three goddesses that ruled over Darkness, Death and Despair, the Mother Goddess of Horror. She¡¯d been blessed by darkness, met death, and now, Cardomos called forth despair. The Ashen Arbiter¡¯s flesh twisted, the remaining armor breaking down, as eyes began growing over his body, opening and closing, blinking. New Escas, breaking the limit of three that he had, just that those weren¡¯t his, but borrowed from Her. As his own Escas popped, blood coming down from the fresh wounds, the price to pay for Her gaze. Cardomos faced Andras, faced His attack, no longer as a mage nor a witch, but as something else. He extended his hands, palms facing up, as a pair of scales. ¡°I have no right to judge someone of your standing, nor do I proclaim you a sinner. And yet, since you are in my presence, I shall pass a last judgment.¡± ¡°Andras Apolyon, I call forth the accusation.¡± The Deriliam didn¡¯t answer, nor acknowledged Cardomos words. Or, if He did, Velvet didn¡¯t notice it. ¡°Grudge of the fallen. Ephalses.¡± And then, Andras'' attack fell. And then, Cardomos brought forth the accusation, the Retribution against the Deriliam¡¯s sins. A blinding light which forced Velvet to cover her eyes with her forearm, followed by a fluttering sound, not like the one of the fairies, but softer, slower. And bigger. Colossally bigger. As the light receded, Velvet saw several wings, more than twenty, completely white, its back facing Velvet. And, at the next instant, it shot up, crashing and crossing part of the dream, part where Andras was. The dream shook, cracks running through the sky, filled with light. A rain of feathers and flesh and blood fell down, some of it falling on top of Velvet¡¯s face, mixing with her own, half-dried blood. It stung, like acid, sizzling as she wiped it out with her hand, burning it in the process. The light disappeared as soon as it appeared, the summoning taking all the power possible from Cardomos. As he fell down, like the feathers. And, like the Deriliam¡¯s flesh. Chapter 162. Answers into pieces, yet you crave the whole puzzle Deriliams couldn''t die. They could get hurt, bleed, get parts blown to pieces, but not die. The concept of Death wasn''t engraved on Their existence. And so, being above it made Them impossible to kill. For that, Cardomos¡¯ Embodiment and sacrifice hadn¡¯t killed, only harmed, Andras. But, that gave them several seconds while the Deriliam recovered. It wasn¡¯t His flesh that they needed, after all. ¡°Frenese.¡± She lightly patted the Devil¡¯s sides, close to his mouth. ¡°I need you to take me to the center, where the Chained Man is.¡± ¡°There¡¯s a spatial distortion there.¡± He said. ¡°But you already know that.¡± Velvet smiled. ¡°Just as close as you can, I¡¯ll take it from there.¡± ¡­ Creftalia wiped the glass bottles clean. Not because they were dirty, but because doing so counted as doing something, and, doing something meant that nothing else could currently be asked from her. Not that anyone was waiting for her to do something, busy as they were searching for Dianthus. And it wasn¡¯t like she could offer any help, being a novice mage and all that. Even Winter had disappeared hours ago to who-knows-wher- Bang! The door slammed open, a metallic, bloody smell coming from the gross, multi-limbed silhouette on its umbral. Crash! The bottle on Creftalias¡¯ hands fell down, breaking into a million pieces as she shrieked, jumping backwards. ¡°Creftalia, don¡¯t shout. It¡¯s me.¡± The monster said. She didn¡¯t listen, retreating to the ends of the lab. But, there was only one exit, and not really that much space to hide¡­ maybe she could get into a cauldron? She did fit in them. As she lunged towards one, a hand grabbed her by the clothes, pulling her back and raising her into the air. ¡°Noo! Don¡¯t eat me! I don¡¯t know what I did wrong, but I¡¯m sorry!¡± ¡°Creftalia.¡± ¡°Waaa!¡± Silence followed, as she first flapped her arms around, before curling into a ball in the air. The monster wasn¡¯t eating her. Huh, weird. Maybe it had eaten all her companions first, and now it was full, planning to store her up before consumption, like she did with her snacks¡­ ¡°I don¡¯t want to end like a cupcake¡­¡± ¡°I think you¡¯ll be more like a frozen sausage.¡± ¡°A sausage¡­ no¡­¡± ¡°Or a slug.¡± ¡°Not a slug!¡± The weight of the accusation made her turn around in shock to face the monster. It had released its previous victim on the ground when it went after her, but the fact that it had three arms was still¡­ No, not three arms. It was grabbing an amputated arm, it wasn¡¯t from the main body. And it wasn¡¯t an it, but a she. A she still covered in blood, wherever it was hers or from someone else, she didn¡¯t know. ¡°Winter!¡± When did she get back? And why did she come for her in that state?! That¡¯s when she noticed the arm still moving, the perfectly manicured, long red nails trying to claw at Winter. The skin had a very good care too, almost like porcelain. It was probably from a noble. A noble that fought Winter and lost. Then, the body¡­ ¡°Prepare the materials to contain this arm before the Luacae arrive.¡± ¡°W-what materials?¡± Nervously, she eyed the aggressive, amputated, only restrained because of Winter¡¯s grip, arm, afraid of coming a single centimeter closer. For a mage bodypart, to continue working after death¡­ it was from at least a family head, which had two open Escas! ¡°What materials?¡± Winter looked back at her, parroting her question. After a long silence, it dawned on her. She was the Remembrance mage here, she was the one supposed to know which materials were needed! ¡°Hands¡­ aggressive hands are from the Wrath Paradigm¡­ to temporarily restrain them I¡­ we¡­ you need to nail them down with electric scorpion¡¯s stings onto a metallic surface.¡± Creftalia looked to the sides, locating the materials. ¡°I¡¯ll get them ready.¡± Free from Winter¡¯s grip, she skittered throughout the lab, opening and closing drawers. ¡°Is the mage dead?¡± Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. Winter turned to look at the corpse. ¡°Yes, but the brain is mostly intact, so the memories-¡± ¡°Not that one!¡± Of course she knew that the corpse was, well, a corpse! ¡°The hand one!¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Winter looked down, as if she didn¡¯t remember if the mage she just ripped that arm from was dead or not. ¡°She got away¡­ I think.¡± Creftalia pressed her lips, but didn¡¯t press the issue, continuing to gather all the things and moving towards one of the tables when she was done. ¡°I will hold the arm still, and you nail it down.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t.¡± Creftalia took a step back after setting the materials on the table, hearing Winter sigh and open her mouth, probably to tell her that she could very much use a hammer. ¡°Don¡¯t¡­ don¡¯t make me do it.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t keep doing this forever.¡± Winter said, but she also didn¡¯t push the issue further, stepping forward and grabbing the hammer. Winter didn¡¯t need time to prepare, for using weapons was her speciality. Soon, the first hit went through, the wet noise of flesh breaking down, the curling, spasmodic movements of the fingers, the blood- Creftalia stopped looking, eyes setting on the corpse next to the door. A mage she had seen previously, another family head, only his upper half remaining. Bite wounds covered that middle zone, going as deep as to appear inside the body, through flesh, organs and bones. Even his face had been bitten, part of his cheek missing, showing his jaw. And yet, his eyes were crystal clear, blinking and staring at her. Creftalia closed her own eyes. No. He wasn¡¯t looking at her. She imagined that. Her scheduled purification date was close, so imagining things was normal. Yes. It was simply because of the blood smell. She was simply overwhelmed by it. Yes. And the noise of Winter nailing down the arm. Even so, she didn¡¯t open her eyes back. It was better that way, not having to see it. She wouldn¡¯t be able to forget if she did, after all. Unlike the Knowledge Paradigm, which was part Apathy, part Greed, the Reminiscence only shared the Greed side, the other one being Grief. She couldn¡¯t simply ignore the disgusting moments like Velvet did. No, her Paradigm forced her to cling onto those feelings. Forever. ¡°... Lia.¡± ¡°Creftalia. It¡¯s done.¡± She opened her eyes, meeting Winter¡¯s. And then she furrowed her nose. ¡°Aren¡¯t the Luacae coming?¡± ¡°Yes, we need one of their heads to access the memories.¡± ¡°Then¡­?¡± ¡°Shortly, the head they are bringing is delicate. We will wait for them at the entrance.¡± ¡°No! Then go take a shower!¡± Winter squinted slightly, dried blood still on her face, on her clothes, on her skin, on her long, white hair. ¡°There is no time for that¡­¡± ¡°You¡­ as the right hand of the Queen, you need to be presentable!¡± Hitting where she knew it hurted, Creftalia saw Winter flinch back, as if she, a novice mage, just slapped a mage with Two Escas, her face twisting in panic before disappearing through the door, whose frame she had kicked down not long ago. At least take the corpse with you¡­ Shaking the towel she was using to clean the bottles, she covered his face. ¡°You were probably awful in life¡­ but all of us are.¡± And mages left no soul after death, so saying something like ¡®Maybe next life it¡¯ll be better¡¯ was useless. The Luacae¡­ Dianthus¡¯ mother is one of them. But she can¡¯t come here. She was forbidden to meet his son, due to Dianthus¡¯ own wishes, and the Queen¡¯s own orders. Creftalia didn¡¯t know the reason behind that, and, the time she asked Dianthus, he took her outside to spar for several hours. She never asked again. ¡­ Frenese ran across the void, chains parting to ease his way, closing after him to slow the chasing Devils. The dream was always bigger than she thought it was, even with the chains helping with finding the way to the center. But they weren¡¯t too far away, since Frenese had avoided the other Devils before, moving closer to the Chained Man. Lothrigern had changed from bothering but avoiding Andras to outright attacking Him, slowing His recovery. Velvet saw some sort of floating green gas, followed by a burning smell without fire, but didn¡¯t look deeper. Two Devils were approaching them, faster than Frenese, even with the chains help. I can¡¯t let them get too close to me or the center¡­ Even when falling like cards under Lothrigern, each Devil could kill Velvet in an instant, in different and creative ways that she didn¡¯t want to find out. So, she needed some way to slow them for real. ¡°Throw me!¡± Frenese didn¡¯t need to be told twice, digging his claws on the void to twist his body around, tossing her with the same strength that he faced the first Devil that arrived. His three mouths opened in a silent snap, fangs showing and drool dripping down, his hell starting to manifest under him. Like a train, he lunged himself against the Devil, who, unable to slow down or stop in time, collided against him. Velvet rolled down, using her arms to cover her head and folding her legs, hitting the ground with force, one or two ribs cracking. But that was a small price to pay to get enough safe distance from her pursuers. With a cough, she pushed herself up first using the void under her, and then her legs, tumbling the last steps before coming almost face to face with the Chained Man. Then she fell back into her knees, as if she was mirroring his position, also forced to kneel down under the chains. ¡°Being always like this must suck.¡± She laughed, tasting the blood on her mouth. She pressed her hands and forehead against the area surrounding the Chained Man, an invisible force pushing back. It wasn¡¯t like a solid wall, but like the river currents, preventing her from swimming against their wishes. That push wasn¡¯t from any sort of spell or formation, but from the Chained Man¡¯s real size, the spatial distortion used as a way to compress his body down. A body so colossal, it could¡¯ve never fit inside Andras¡¯ prison. Without Him employing some tricks like this one. But that meant that she didn¡¯t even need to reach the normal one, since, by touching the spatial distortion, she had already reached him. With a push, her arms sank into the void, losing their sense of touch, of pain and of temperature, as she blindly gripped onto something, whatever she could reach. ¡°Someday I¡¯ll come back for the whole of you, I promise. But for now, I can only take a piece.¡± She pressed, feeling her arms become chains, wrapping with the ones outside the compressed space, using all their combined strength to pull. Velvet didn¡¯t know if she had managed to grab something, but, for now, she could only have faith. Chapter 163. Luacae For a moment, all her attention was into pulling at the chains, the dream pulling next to her, ripping and tearing at what she hoped was the Chained Man¡¯s flesh. Painfully slowly, the chains started coming out, tainted red. Not her red, from her own blood, but a wholly different red, small pieces of shredded flesh clinging on them. Using magic, she made that bloody flesh fall down from her chains into her lap, starting to converge into a small ball. ¡°Tsk.¡± That sound of annoyance didn¡¯t come from her, and neither from Frenese nor Lothrigern, and yet, it sounded as if the speaker was next to her. From the start, its owner had remained mostly detached from the fight, acting more like a machine than a thinking, aware being. But now they clearly pushed one too many buttons, most of them pushed by Lothrigern, the reason why the complaint was directed majorly towards Him. A complaint made more than clear when the Deriliam came crashing down, a green flash slamming against the ground, the sheer strength of the impact killing several Devils in the process. So, in case Lotrigern¡¯s avatar getting potentially destroyed, and Andras Apolyon no longer worrying about His creation¡¯s lives wasn¡¯t sign enough for her to pack it up, the following thing certainly was. One of Andras'' fallen flesh pieces distorted, bulging and increasing in size, molding into a human shape, the Deriliam choosing to dispatch an Avatar instead of healing His main body. Not that that was a bad choice. An Avatar was all He needed to deal with both Velvet and Frenese. ¡­ Creftalia paced around the room, mopping the bloody trails Winter had left by entering and leaving. The Luacae¡­ how soon is soon? She didn¡¯t exactly trust Winter¡¯s way of counting time, yet she said they were arriving right now, so¡­ ¡°Creftalia.¡± A voice called her from behind, making her jump and screech, quickly turning around to be met by Igern¡¯s frown, her scream dying in her mouth, which remained open before she closed it with a snap. They stared at each other in silence for a moment, before Igern continued speaking. ¡°Winter sent me to pick the Raticheo.¡± ¡°That¡¯s the mage corpse¡­ there.¡± She pointed to the corner of the room, where she had put the body so as to not bother her. ¡°Are the Luacae already here?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Igern said, walking to the corpse and lifting it up, making some blood clots fall into the clean floor, to Creftalia¡¯s dismay. Yet Igern moved his hand, intending to use ice magic to block the wounds. Before flinching, and stopping, lowering his hand. Creftalia opened her mouth to ask if he was alright, but closed it back down when Igern started to leave, silently following him, before stopping when he turned to look at her, questioning. ¡°The Luacae are bringing someone that can read memories.¡± She said, sounding almost¡­ Hopefully happy. ¡­ Creftalia followed Igern to the entrance, her eyes meeting Winter¡¯s as she looked at her with a taint of worry. As if she wasn¡¯t happy with her presence. So it¡¯s him who they really brought. Unable to keep her smile from creeping over her face, her eyes moved to the five figures in front of Winter, all of them covered in white robes, their heads covered by veils, locked in place by silver crowns made of vines. The Luacae, the sorcerers under Arhontissa, blesseds by her. Her priests and acolytes, residents of the Luachra, the Sky Tree where the goddess resided. And not only that, for the Luacae wasn¡¯t only the name of the priests and priestesses worshipers of Arhontissa, caretakers of her temples, but also the ones tasked with guarding the Silver Cages. You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. In fact, one of the Luacae, the highest ranked one, due to their silver crown being more elaborated, and their robes having some silver motifs depicting leaves, was carrying a cage, like the ones used to keep birds, covered by a white cloth, like their veils. None of the Luacae spoke, not that Creftalia expected them to, since any Arhontissian knew that they were under a vow of silence, never uttering a word. Even so, Dianthus had told her once that the vow was only while they wore the priest attire outside the Luachra Temple, and that inside they very much did talk to each other. Creftalia had zero proof of that being the case, but¡­ he was the one born and raised there, not her. And, aside from the vow of silence, the Luacae also had a vow of celibacy. Igern lowered the corpse in front of the Luacae, or, more specifically, in front of the cage, ignoring the blood that remained clinging into his clothes. Then, he took a step back, relea- ¡°Keep the Raticheo raised, son of Styrger, don¡¯t make this poor old man bend his neck, hahaha!¡± Creftalia flinched in panic when that name was said, followed by the crack of the corpse¡¯s bones under Igern¡¯s grip, snapping under the pressure, blood clots creeping down his fingers as he raised his head, eyes bloodshot. Luckily for them, Winter lunged forward, pulling Igern back, before he was the one doing the lunging, away from the voice inside the cage. ¡°Carthagia.¡± Winter said, one hand keeping the corpse raised while holding Igern¡¯s neck with the other, applying enough pressure to relax him by force. ¡°Didn¡¯t the shame of betraying Arhontissa fix that attitude?¡± ¡°The only thing that ¡®betrayal¡¯ did was make me lose weight.¡± The Luacae holding the cage looked in Winter''s direction, who responded with a nod, making them take down the veil, showing its insides, and the origin of the voice. A decapitated head was inside, its traits shaping it as a seventy something year old man with gray, disheveled hair. Despite the fact that it was, well, a decapitated head, its purple eyes were full of life, and a smirk creeped through his face. All of that was thanks to the cage, obviously. The Silver Cages, the artifacts used to keep mages ¡°alive¡± after mortal wounds or after being executed for betraying Arhontissa, only used for mages with more than two Escas, that¡¯s to say, Family Heads or Archmages. Only those could remain alive for enough time after something like decapitation for the artifact to work, after all. Winter¡¯s mouth flickered, frowning, yet she didn¡¯t answer the head¡¯s provocations. ¡°Who took Dianthus?¡± ¡°The answer to that question is rather obvious, no? You wouldn¡¯t have brought me here if the Mergifari wasn¡¯t directly involved.¡± ¡°Whoever took him used spells and knowledge belonging to the Raticheos to teleport him instantly inside a pocket dimension, one whose entrance closed without a trace.¡± If the Raticheos hadn¡¯t been on their side back then, and hadn¡¯t been executed by Hasdrubal, Winter would have suspected them, but, after everything that happened, it was clear that, like them, Hasdrubal had suspected the Raticheos interference, and, a step faster than Winter and company, he had gone for them. Because Hasdrubal wouldn¡¯t have left them the Raticheo¡¯s Family Head brain intact if someone else hadn¡¯t gotten there even faster than him. If Hasdrubal himself hadn¡¯t been a step later than someone. Because, despite the way he had gone about it, keeping them alive as Cheron ate them, he had made sure that she only bit the part of the brain that kept them unable to move. A precision that little monster didn¡¯t possess on her own. But, what mattered was that Hasdrubal had kept them alive long enough for Winter to obtain their corpses without them dissolving. Especially the brains. Because Hasdrubal knew she would infiltrate the Raticheo¡¯s pocket dimension, the same way he knew that the Queen would send the Luacae with Carthagia to see their memories. Hasdrubal the All-knowing, that title wasn¡¯t just for show. And yet, he was trying to use Arhontissia¡¯s resources to find who got there first. Winter had connected those dots because of the Queen, not being her own deductions, yet they worked the same. If the Queen had decided to play into Hasdrubal¡¯s intentions, then Winter would do the same. It wasn¡¯t a problem for her, after all. No matter how smart or brillant a knowledge mage was, Winter had yet to meet one that could outsmart a bullet to the head. The same could be said about Carthagia. A genius in his youth, an Archamge of the Reminiscence Paradigm in his latest years, and, even with all of that, his head had been cut by Winter herself. And yet, if someone could know where Dianthus was located, it was one of the mages that founded and built the Mergifari. One whose eyes moved from the corpse to something behind her intermittently. Ticked off, Winter turned her head around, watching how Creftalia stopped waving, lowering her hand embarrassed, even when her smile didn¡¯t disappear. An interference that annoyed Carthagia. ¡°Winter, you might be singler than a Luacae after retirement, satisfied by simping over some second-rate Queen your whole life, but some of us weren¡¯t! Don¡¯t try to shame my granddaughter from greeting me!¡± ¡°Second rat-¡± Winter¡¯s face froze, and then, it was Igern¡¯s turn to stop her, helped by two of the Luacae. Chapter 164. Dreamers die thrice Things calmed down fast, by Winter¡¯s standard, principally since she was in a forgiving, relaxed mood. Really, Carthagia had to consider himself lucky that she was so calm. Not like Igern and the Luacae shared the sentiment, panting and massaging their almost dislocated shoulders and strained muscles, mostly giving her a glare under the veils. ¡°Stop wasting time, Carthagia. I¡¯m not interested in playing these games.¡± Winter said, even when she very much did fall for his taunts and played his games earlier. ¡°Keep in mind it was the Queen¡¯s grace that allowed you to be here.¡± She had been against the idea, in fact. There were around five or so more Archmages from the Knowledge or Reminiscence Paradigm in Arhontissa that could be called in place of Carthagia, none of which were one of the Mergifari founders. The idea had been ridiculous in her eyes, so much that, if it hadn¡¯t come from the Queen¡¯s mouth, she would¡¯ve accused the creator of treason. ¡­ ¡°But why him?¡± She had asked back then ¡°If Hasdrubal implanted thought seeds in any of their minds, Carthagia would be able to interpret them and team up with him! They wouldn¡¯t even need to talk to each other!¡± ¡°If Hasdrubal leaves any seed, any information mage would be able to decode it, not only Carthagia.¡± ¡°You know what I¡¯m referring to. Carthagia was Hasdrubal¡¯s Selector. His teacher.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that better?¡± The Queen laughed, a soft, graceful laugh that stopped Winter¡¯s train of thought, making her choke on her tongue. ¡°Who is better to punish an unruly student other than his teacher?¡± She cleared her throat. ¡°But how are you certain of that? His loyalty has always been to the Mergifari, not Arhontissa.¡± ¡°Indeed.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± The Queen leaned over, looming over her from her seat. It wasn¡¯t her throne, since that one was on Arhontissa, even so, it was relatively close in size, littered with elegant fabrics and pillows, allowing her to lay down comfortably. ¡°Winter, do you trust my judgment?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡­ ¡°Of course.¡± Carthagia said, making Winter suspect of him peeking into her memories. Information Archmages were a pain in the ass for that same reason. Well, all Archmages were a pain to deal with in some way, that¡¯s what made them Archmages. ¡°Then I better get to it! Don¡¯t want the guy to disintegrate while you dilly dally, do I?¡± I¡¯m hardly the only one dilly dall-! No, deep breaths, you can do this¡­ Imagine snapping his neck- No, he doesn¡¯t have one. Remember the time when you cut his head off¡­ ¡°Right.¡± She ended up saying between gritted teeth. Carthagia hummed. ¡°Creftalia, dear, turn around for a minute.¡± ¡°I will cover my ears too!¡± Not waiting a second more, she did as told, turning around and blocking her ears with charms. ¡°You¡¯ve pampered her too much,¡± Winter complained. ¡°She barely makes any progress.¡± ¡°Weren¡¯t you supposed to pick a knowledge mage as selected to make her company?¡± She remembered Velvet, one of the few novices from the Knowledge Paradigm from this year, who not only refused her generous offer for his, but also scared Creftalia shirtless. Not that doing so was hardly an accomplishment. ¡°I tried to, but she chose another mag-¡± She choked on the word, grimacing. ¡°Another.¡± ¡°Then you''ve got no one else to blame but you.¡± ¡°You-!¡± Deep breaths. ¡°Reminiscence mages need knowledge mages to advance, and knowledge mages need reminiscence mages to keep the pull of corruption away.¡± She knew that. Mages whose Paradigms were related to Apathy were difficult to raise without issues. They weren¡¯t exactly loyal, and, if left to their devices, they had a big chance of becoming witches without noticing. Not that the latter was an issue in the Mergifari, being more of a problem of wild mages. But, since it was still an existing problem, mages with the resources available to do so usually paired apathy and apathy-adjacent mages with some ¡°grounding¡± Paradigms. Reminiscence being Knowledge¡¯s grounder. The Paradigm focused on the results kept in check the one focused on the process. And, needing only one to figure out something, and another to repeat the result without making the previous steps was useful in its own way. And, reminiscence mages presence kept knowledge mages feelings unburied, which stopped them from fully committing to ¡°the end justifies the means¡± in their search for knowledge. That¡¯s why losing Velvet bothered her. Knowledge mages weren¡¯t uncommon, but unaffiliated knowledge mages who had troubles with the mage families controlling their original country, thus being in need of protection from another place, and whose country¡¯s deity was dead, making changing faiths easier¡­ Those were rare. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. Gurgling sounds coming from the corpse stopped her absentmindedness, as a dirty, whitish substance fell from the corpse¡¯s eyes and ears, due to Carthagia removing the memories by force, destroying the brain in the process. Soon, the white became translucid, floating instead of falling, before falling up instead of down. The gurgling sounds died down, as the now translucent, silvery liquid started flowing freely, first from the internal organs dissolving and then the skin, muscles and bones. The whole dissolution didn¡¯t take a minute to be complete, the spot where the mage was being now occupied by a floating, translucent mass. None of the present mages showed any worry, since that was a normal occurrence when mages of two Escas died. The birth of a Mage Inheritance, a way to obtain a Grimoire. Winter touched the liquid, the voice of Johan Raticheo sounding in her mind. To the one who brings Hasdrubal¡¯s head. To a Raticheo by blood. Completing any of the two petitions worked to unlock the Grimoire, but she didn¡¯t have the means now. And the second choice was way easier. She turned to look at Carthagia. ¡°How much information did you get?¡± ¡°For which incompetent bastard do you take me for? I¡¯m old, not senile!¡± Carthagia closed his eyes, and, after seconds of silence, Winter feared that the totally-not-senile old head had fallen asleep. ¡°Then?¡± ¡°Let me think, grow some patience!¡± Carthagia cleared his throat¡­ or at least made a noise as if he was doing so. ¡°You, son of Sty-¡± ¡°Igern. Don¡¯t call me anything aside from my name.¡± ¡°Do you know where that name came from? Ah, whatever, call my granddaughter.¡± Igern simply grabbed Creftalia by the collar of her shirt, pulling her back and turning her around. ¡°Can¡¯t you be gentler?!¡± That¡¯s him being gentle¡­ You should¡¯ve asked me. Winter thought, not saying anything, as Creftalia removed the charms from her ears. ¡°Youngsters these days¡­ back in my days we were true gentlemen!¡± Wasn¡¯t that thousand of years ago? ¡°Of course, what can one expect from mages raised by that no-elegance idiot¡­¡± Before Winter guessed who that no-elegance idiot was (it was her), Carthagia changed themes. ¡°Creftalia, dear, take three steps back and two left.¡± ¡°Sure.¡± She did as told, no doubts in her actions. As she took the last step, something collided with¡­ everything, and the pocket dimension snaped. ¡­ Right before Lothrigern hit the ground, Velvet stopped tugging at the chains, changing into activating the formation needed to send the flesh to the other side. The ball of flesh accumulated wasn¡¯t much, fitting into a closed hand, but she wouldn¡¯t risk it any more. Cardomos had fallen, Lothrigern too. Only her and Frenese remained. Blood freely dripped from her nose, eyes and ears, both her brain and Esca being pushed to their limits. ¡­. Cracks ran through the palace as it came crashing down, appearing from the air and crawling across all surfaces regardless of the material. Creftalia fell down atop of a floor piece, the cracks running close to her but not close enough to be a danger. The same couldn¡¯t be said about the others, who, despite being caught by surprise, reacted instantly, jumping and evading the fissures. Yet, the Luacae carrying Carthagia¡¯s cage couldn¡¯t keep the hold over it, as the cage fell down, clanking as it hit the palace debris and rolled away. Yet the old man''s maniacal laughter echoed across the spinning room. ¡°Even with all your schemes, you are still a bunch of incompetent fools when real shit hits the fan!¡± ¡°Grandpa! Stop rolling across the floor!¡± Creftalia said, chasing after him, while tripping and rolling down. ¡°I would love to do so, but alas, while gravity is just a force, I¡¯m just a head¡­¡± The old man muttered. Luckily for them, or, more due to Carthagia¡¯s calculations, she managed to reach and grab the cage, before taking out a protective staff and activating a shield. Falling debris clashed against the wall, but got reflected. Instinctively, she closed her eyes while feeding the staff, ignoring the noises. After many trials and errors, she knew how much damage it cout take before needing to be replaced. And she had a lot of replacements. ¡°Creftalia, open your eyes!¡± Carthagia called. ¡°Look up and witness what the Mergifari stands for!¡± She did as told, thought begrudgingly, forcing her head up. And soon, a formation lit up across the whole space, slowing the destruction, not only of their pocket dimension, but of all of them, all across the Mergifari, stopping all the pocket dimensions from breaking down at the same time. ¡°The Mergifari will be the last bastion, the lighthouse at the end of the world! Not the gods goons, nor the gods themselves could destroy it! And certainly not the Deriliam!¡± Carthagia looked to the side, where Igern had jumped, close enough to them to hear the conversation, thus becoming part of it. ¡°You have no idea of the price we paid to build the Mergifari. No, the price we are still willing to pay. We can give everything to keep it standing, can any of you do the same for your goals? From our life to our death-¡± ¡­ Three seconds, two seconds¡­ Velvet kept tracing the formation with her own blood, counting the distance between them. She didn¡¯t have enough time. No matter how many times she counted or how many things she changed, the resulting conclusion didn¡¯t change. Andras'' attack reached her before she finished the formation every time. Even when the brain of a knowledge mage worked a thousand times faster than their body, there wasn¡¯t much they could do if there wasn¡¯t anything that could be done. Even if she added some time by letting the attack go through half her body. Even if she added the time it¡¯ll take to reach her heart. Even if- She didn¡¯t want to wake up now, not when she was so, so close to winning. There really wasn¡¯t a worse defeat, that the one whose victory had already been tasted. But, she wouldn¡¯t sacrifice herself for anyone, not for Cardomos, and not for the Mergifari. And so- ¡­ ¡°And to us, death is nothing more than a transaction.¡± ¡­ Something moved at the corner of Velvet¡¯s sight. Cardomos raised. His armor was now cracked and gone, showing his damaged back, scarred under a thousand battles, half of it stone, all of it covered in eyes, previously unfocused and liveless, now with the irises colored white. Not the first time Velvet had seen those eyes. Like Skugol¡¯s, they were the result of the Blessing of Death. ¡°To get eyes like this, you need to die first.¡± He had told her. ¡°And, of course, the Goddess of Death must allow you to come back.¡± Then, what if the Goddess of Death herself was the one who waved goodbye? Chapter 165. Your life, your death and everything that remains Velvet didn¡¯t waste any time admiring Cardomos¡¯ comeback. It was a temporary solution, nothing more than him using his own corpse as a wall to buy some time. The same time that she so badly needed. ¡°Grudge of the fallen.¡± Cardomos activated his Embodiment one last time, targeting Andras¡¯ avatar. Just that, this time, the Deriliam cut him in half before the spell went through. A clean cut, too fast for Velvet to even discern what happened. Maybe if she had paid more attention, but doing so would be wasting Cardomos¡¯ short revival. Just two more. She continued shaping the formation, trying to go as far as possible. A flashing light crossed through the corner of her eyes, first behind Andras, and then right in front of her, traversing the space between her and Andras before Cardomos¡¯ hit the ground a second time. Lothrigern. His presence a threat too close to her for comfort, her own flesh threatening to twist under His presence. In His hands, remnant energy from a spell condensed, dissolving into the air. Then, the two bloodied pieces of Cardomos¡¯ broken corpse reacted, merging back, roots growing from the wounds, tangling between each other as if sewing a broken dress. ¡°Ephalses.¡± Cardomos opened his eyes back again, fulfilling his Embodiment. For a second time, the colossal sets of wings extended, making a wall between her and Andras Apolyon. And, between the winged summon and her, Lothrigern stood. She soon understood the reason why, as the skin in her face began to sizzle, starting to burn, yet nos as brutally as it would were not the Deriliam in the middle. He wasn¡¯t nearly as affected, and she supposed that, if it weren¡¯t for the damage done by Andras, the effect would be zero. But, that bought her enough time. The formation was complete, and, after activating it, the flesh disappeared from her hands in a red mist, something to which she was about to follow soon, not forgetting to drag Frenese¡¯s chain back with her. It wouldn¡¯t do to abandon him here and trigger the Deal, after all. The instant before waking up, she looked up at Lothrigern. Purple blood ran through His body, the fresh wounds made by Andras¡¯ attack ignored, with burning feathers growing inside, spouting from them together with the smell of burning flesh. He wouldn¡¯t die, with Deriliams being immortal. Her eyes hurted slightly simply from taking a glimpse, and yet¡­ ¡°You really are beautiful.¡± Velvet said, before activating the waking up charm she made with her own skin and blood, her surroundings going completely black. ¡­ When she opened her eyes, she was back at Cardomos¡¯ temple, all her physical wounds gone, and yet, the mental exhaustion was real, same as the accumulated miasma, making her unable to lift a single finger. Dianthus surely could wait one or two hours while she napped, right? She would go for him first thing after getting back up, just, not now. Velvet closed her eyes once again, before snapping them open seconds later. The flesh! The Chained man¡¯s flesh! Propping herself up with her elbows, she looked around, towards the place where she knew the formation was supposed to teleport the flesh.This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. It was there, a small ball of minced meat, bloody, squirming and very much alive. A wave of nausea hit her upon looking at it, not as strong as the Deriliam¡¯s presence, and certainly not deadly or heavily corrupting, just sickening. The space around it twisted, sigils, spells and symbols appearing in the air, changing and transforming simply by being close to the flesh. That was bad. Not now, since Cardomos¡¯ pocket dimension was big enough to take a little damage to the formation holding it together without coming apart, but if she wanted to transport the flesh, well¡­ Any container would break down were she to put it inside, and she very much didn''t want to carry the flesh in her person. A soft laugh startled her, and she turned to look at the place where the Chained man¡¯s sculpture and altar were previously. Just that now, that statue was gone, having been pushed to the ground, crashing into smithereens. In its place, claiming the temple as her own, sitting on the altar with her legs crossed, was the Goddess of Death, looking down at her behind her veil. And then she clapped. Two times, two silent claps, due to her fleshless fingers and the more demure than energetic way in which she did so. ¡°You made it.¡± Breathless and exhausted, Velvet met her compliment with a smile. ¡°It was a team effort, mostly.¡± And yet her words were true. She had won. ¡°It wouldn¡¯t have been any other way. No sane living, or dying, being would believe themselves able to confront a Deriliam.¡± ¡°Which only leaves the crazy ones like Cardomos to go and pull it off?¡± Even at the cost of his life, and his death, and even what remained after that. ¡°Exactly. So, answer me this¡­¡± The Goddess of Death descended from the altar, walking towards the squirming ball of flesh, the bones of her toes rattling softly against the ground. ¡°Who allows the crazy to lead them? Who follows a dying man down to his last breath? What do we call those people?¡± Velvet fell silent, thinking about a satisfactory comeback, even when she would be content with any non stupid answer. After all, she was too damn tired to bicker with a Goddess, her mind trying to shut itself down constantly. The Goddess of Death waited for her to respond patiently, not making any more advances towards the flesh. ¡°Then, I guess they would be the ones trusting that he can pull it off. The believers.¡± ¡°Did you trust in him?¡± ¡°Not completely. I always had the chance to run away.¡± A chance she would have taken if being needed, no doubts about it. That¡¯s why she didn¡¯t fully trust Cardomos right until the end. ¡°Smart, and yet,¡± The Goddess of Death bent her knee, lowering herself to reach the ball of flesh. ¡°If you had trusted him, this amount of accumulated flesh would¡¯ve been bigger.¡± ¡°I know.¡± ¡°Then I will take my share.¡± She grabbed the ball in one hand and got up, with her free hand pinching a small piece of squirming flesh, taking it behind the veil and¡­ if Velvet was right, proceeding to eat it. After that, she let out a sweet, soft laugh, teasing her reaction. ¡°Don¡¯t let any peckish curiosity get the better of you.¡± ¡°Wasn¡¯t going to!¡± Not that she planned to eat it herself. In fact, the Goddess of Death was right, she didn¡¯t even get enough to experiment with. This time, the Goddess walked towards her, moving with elegance, her barefootedness and fleshlessness doing little to dampen her dainty steps. No wonder one of the titles of her trinity is the Mother Goddesses of Horror. They really do act and look like evil deities¡­From the eyes growing from Cardomos¡¯ flesh under the influence of the Mother of Witches, the bleeding moon from the time when she asked the Goddess of Darkness for her blessings and the rotting form of the Goddess of Death¡­ they really lived up to their names. And yet all three of them had helped her in some way. When she reached Velvet, she extended one arm forward, the rotting, tattered skin on her forearm dangling. Then, she ripped it off slowly, as if she was removing a glove. Once the skin was separated, she wrapped it around the ball of flesh, lifting the skin¡¯s edges upwards before pressing them together, making a small pouch. Then, she leaned over, putting the skin pouch on top of Velvet¡¯s chest, right above her heart. The bag was warm, beating against the beats of her own heart, the faint sensation of the flesh squirming inside. She wanted to reach for it and put it in her pocket, where she wouldn¡¯t be feeling it that much, yet her eyelids felt heavy, extremely heavy, and she vaguely suspected the Goddess of Death interference over it. But she didn¡¯t fight the sleep this time, a part of her confident that her spell, like Lothrigern¡¯s, could give her a normal dream. A dream that could be called rest. ¡°Rest well Velvet, you did good.¡± That was the last thing she heard, before everything went dark once again. Chapter 166. Like crashing stars Igern looked up, towards the mending palace cracks and the closing void gaps. Towards the falling debris, which now moved up, back to their original positions, or, at least, as close as they could go. Some renovations and adjustments would be needed, the marble walls and ceilings merging into a misshapen surface, one that, even when remaining firm and standing, was a mockery of its previous magnificence. But, even so, the ability of crossing space with magic, to invade, control and modify pocket dimensions from outside was impossible to attain for most mages. For most meaning all of them except one. This was the power of the Director, a power rivaling the gods themselves. One Igern envied. If he could reach it, if he could obtain it, even just for a minute, he would be able to¡­ ¡°Hey, you.¡± The consequences didn¡¯t matter. They never had. ¡°Styrger.¡± His eyebrows twitched. He tried to shape an ice spear, but the flinching, piercing pain in his chest stopped him. He needed more time to heal his Esca. ¡°You¡¯re getting on my nerves.¡± Not as much as Dianthus did, but close. ¡°I hope those nerves you speak of are the ones in your fancy ears, since you¡¯re so insistent on ignoring your elders.¡± Carthagia said. ¡°Now quit being such a perched chicken and get your ass down here.¡± Really fucking close. But he obeyed, jumping down the misaligned debris. His Esca complained, his blood boiling under the mockery of a dishonored, defeated, imprisoned head. He was of the Tyrant Paradigm. A Paradigm not exactly known for being merciful, patient and understanding. He never harbored any intentions of playing games or joining jokes. Kings laughed at jesters, tyrants chopped their heads. Or whatever remained in this case. And yet he recognized those intense feelings as a result of forcefully opening his Esca not long ago. Carthagia¡¯s words bothered him, yes, but he wasn¡¯t so far gone to try to kill him. Not sunken deep enough to become a witch. Creftalia deactivated the barrier the moment he got close, which bothered him even more. What if he had gone with the intention of killing them? She knew that her grandfather was pushing him to at least retaliate in some way. All that trust would only get her killed someday. ¡°A-are you hurt?¡± Creftalia asked, looking up and down at him repeatedly. ¡°No.¡± At least, not in a way she could treat him. ¡°Oh, he is, but the wounds of the heart are not so easy to fix, even more so if they come from the blood-¡± With a quick move, he snatched the cage from Creftalia¡¯s hands. ¡°Ah!¡± Enough of this damned old man, he was going to yeet him through the window. Maybe he managed to crash him against the pocket dimension¡¯s edge. And, if not, at least he wouldn¡¯t have to hear him anymore. Igern turned, and then, a sharp stab dug into his mind, stopping his muscles. ¡°Now, now, son of Styrger, why don¡¯t you listen to me for a bit while they don¡¯t listen?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t call me that.¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to call you that as long as you insist on following in his footsteps.¡± Before Igern complained that no, he wasn¡¯t, Carthagia added. ¡°On the suicidal mission, the-end-justifies-the-means shit both of you have.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not the same.¡± Igern said through gritted teeth, wanting to smash the cage against something. In fact, he had tried to, several times, but the skills of an Archmage were no joke, nullifying his body completely. This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. His mind wanted to, but, every time he gave the order to his body to move, it didn¡¯t connect, the intention lost somewhere. Where were the Luacae? How far did they end up? Did Carthagia estimate their positions when picking Creftalia¡¯s position? He glanced at Creftalia, who had a stupid expression on her face, like when she was lost in thought. So, even she was under a spell. ¡°As I said, let¡¯s talk while they don¡¯t listen. You and me, man to man.¡± ¡°Man to head.¡± ¡°Hah, didn¡¯t know you made jokes.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t.¡± ¡°You should make some every now and then, it¡¯s good for the mind. In fact, mages that laugh more accumulate corruption slower than mages who don¡¯t. A smile a day-¡± ¡°Is this what you wanted to say?¡± His patience was running thin, so thin it had stopped existing since a while ago. Carthagia sighed. ¡°I hope you don¡¯t treat your dates like this¡­ Alright, calm down, I don¡¯t even know how your eyebrows can keep on twitching even under my control. That amount of spite you¡¯re running with it''s not sane, you¡¯ll pop a vein doing that.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You need to understand, I¡¯m an old man, I like to ramble.¡± ¡°Get to the point.¡± One of his fingers moved. Good. Carthagia sighed, rolling his eyes. ¡°How''s the split? It¡¯s not fifty-fifty, is it? It¡¯s never equal with hybrids. One part always has a deeper reach than the other.¡± Igern froze, choking on his tongue¡­ even when it was more him biting it, a metallic taste filling his mouth. ¡°Why are you asking-¡± ¡°There¡¯s not much to do in a cage without a body, so we talk. And me and your father are something like shelf neighborhoods. He rambles about you a lot, his beloved successor.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t give me that scary look, I find Styrger¡¯s ideas a bunch of ridiculous rubbish! And yet, even trash has something of value. So, I¡¯d like that little something of value to do me a tiny favor.¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°I know how to break that spell.¡± ¡°... Speak.¡± ¡­ Winter looked up to the mending pocket dimension. During all her life, she had defeated innumerable mages, some with Escas more evolved than her, with more resources, with more allies¡­ Even when the gap between her and her enemy was immense, she had some ideas of how to defeat them. All of them. Without counting on luck or fate, just on her skills. She knew how to confront any mage in and out the Mergifari. Any except the Director. Her mind went blank when thinking about it. Not out of fear or respect, she simply didn¡¯t know how. Knowing a mage¡¯s Paradigm meant knowing their strengths and weaknesses, and not even that helped. The Director was simply out of reach. Wait for her to die of age. Wait for her to die of Corruption. Those were the only options she¡¯d been given from everyone. To wait. She was a hunter, where waiting was part of the hunt. Even so, waiting for the other party to drop dead on her own¡­ I want to fight her. Before she dies, I want to find a way to reach her. Those were her deepest thoughts, the ones she hadn¡¯t shared even with the Queen. She hadn¡¯t become a mage for political power, lasting beauty, increased intelligence or longer life. Even when she had three of those things already, they didn¡¯t matter. Just some extras. The thing she wanted the most was to fight. The stronger her enemy, the better. And the Director was the strongest. A dying star, one supposed to crash and burn someday. One that deep down, Winter hoped lasted a little longer. As long as she needed to find a way to reach it. If you have to die, let me be the one to kill you. It wasn¡¯t personal, even with the conflicts between Arhontissa and the Mergifari at the present. She didn¡¯t care about politics, never had. ¡°Winter.¡± Snapped away from her thoughts, she turned, looking at Igern, who was carrying Creftalia under one arm like a sack of potatoes and a cage in the other. A cage with a very disheveled head inside. It wasn¡¯t so messy before¡­ ¡°Igern, don¡¯t shake the Silver Cages, they are fragile.¡± She saw him open and close his mouth, not a hint of guilt in his face, before he cleared his throat. ¡°We know who took Dianthus.¡± Winter¡¯s expression changed, no longer interested in the cage¡¯s state. ¡°Who?¡± ¡°Oi, don¡¯t steal my moment. Look at me.¡± Cathagia said. Winter looked down before squinting, pressing her lips in a thin line. ¡°If you answer me with some stupid riddle or joke¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s an easy one. Really easy, even someone like you will have no problem guessing it.¡± When Winter didn¡¯t say anything, simply pulled out her shotgun, he added. ¡°Someone who already took a mage from you, which I guess makes your disgust for him not so baseless.¡± Winter¡¯s eyes widened slightly, and the next instant, she rushed out. ¡°Don¡¯t kill him! Was kicking down the palace¡¯s door necessary?¡± ¡°She does that sometimes¡­¡± Creftalia said. Chapter 167. Hollow puzzle A string of small chirps interrupted her peaceful, deserved slumber, followed by something tugging at a strand of her hair. What in turn was followed by a shriek as she slapped the wannabird away. And, a few seconds later, followed by her having a realization, eyes snapping open. There were no birds at Cardomos¡¯ pocket dimension. Sitting up, Velvet looked around. She was in a forest, not the grey, almost monochrome one of the Death Realm, but in a colorful, filled with mixed, contrasting, moving shades, their edges blurred, interconnected, which didn¡¯t allow any of the trees to show any sort of identifying detail. Velvet rubbed her eyes, but the landscape didn''t get any less confusing, the colors blending between each other, almost becoming¡­ something, but not quite. Even the annoying birds suffered from the same issue, their colors and shapes not matching any species she had knowledge of. They looked like a mix between a hummingbird and a secretary bird, wings flapping at top speed with extremely long legs and a feathery crest. Reaching for the knowledge obtained from Hyde in regards to magical beasts, she quickly found a match. Nocnitsa, a small type of nightmare spirit that drained people¡¯s energy while they rested. Pretty weak, not really a problem for a mage, mostly a pain for humans, and not even then, preying more on children than adults. And this group had golden rings on their legs with some kind of encryption she couldn¡¯t decipher, but whose meaning wasn¡¯t lost on her. They had an owner, not being wild monsters. So not ripping them from their feathers. A shame, she wouldn¡¯t say no to easy materials. But, ignoring the curious gaze of the nocnitsa, who no longer approached her, their presence was enough of a clue to identify her location. Right, I¡¯m dreaming. Since from the start she had spent all her dreams inside the Chained man¡¯s, with the exception of the time Lothrigern took her into another, one crafted by Him exclusively for her. Which meant she had never experienced a real mage¡¯s dream. Even when mages from the Sloth Paradigm and its affiliated Paradigms were the ones who could squeeze the Dream Realm¡¯s true potential, that didn¡¯t exempt the others from accessing it. The Dream Realm, or, the Collective Unconsciousness, the Land of Imagination and Wonderland. Those were some of the names used to refer to it. But, since she found Dream Realm to sound easier, and match with how she called the other realms, that was the name she went with. Deep down, all Paradigms originated from the depths of the Primeval Sea, and thus, were born from the same source. That¡¯s why, even if weakened, she could use spells from other Paradigms. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± If it had been any other time, she would have been much more enthusiastic about exploring it, but, moving safely in the Dream Realm required using her Esca, which meant accumulating miasma. And, since she had no previous experience, nor a Paradigm adept to exploring dreams, her options were reduced to some surface beginner stuff. ¡°...¡± No, she couldn¡¯t rip the nocnitsa¡¯s feathers. Not without knowing who the mage owning them was, at least. Pick fights, as many as possible, but not all of them was her motto for a reason. And she liked to pick the fights she knew she could win, which in this case she had no way to know. Velvet pushed herself off the fake, painting-like ground. ¡°I expected the Dream Realm to be stranger.¡± Of course, since dreams were mostly based on reality, and the Dream Real was based on those collective dreams, it mostly shared an uncanny resemblance to the Material Realm, even when she could see isolated zones inspired in anothers. ¡°You¡¯re the strangest of them all.¡± A voice said, close to her and up. ¡°At least while the clock is cold. The thing about strangers is that the more ticks you spend with them, the less stranger they remain.¡± ¡°A transformation where the stranger does not change, but the eye of the beholder does.¡± Velvet finished, smiling and looking up, greeting her own stranger, while readying an explosive charm behind her back. Dying was the fastest way to end a dream, after all. She wouldn¡¯t try to fight a sloth mage on their home turf, even less after facing two Deriliams. At the first sign of things going awry, Velvet would explode herself.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. Now, about the mage, who had chosen to surprise her by sitting on the tree¡¯s branches above her, even when in reality she would¡¯ve been able to feel their presence way before then, and yet, since dreams had no concept of physics, things that should make noise didn¡¯t. It was a little girl, around twelve or so, wearing a frilly blue dress with striped socks, with long grey hair hanging down. Grey hair and blue eyes¡­ Charlampian. Just like her¡­ and the Grahams, the Ropertti and others. Not exactly a lucky encounter. The girl chuckled, hands clasped behind her back as she leaned back, flipping her body upside down, dangling from the tree like dried sausage only with her legs, her skirt floating, gravity being another thing not working correctly here. ¡°Are you lost? You seem loster than a river lobster!¡± ¡°You mean a crayfish?¡± ¡°Crazy fish? Were they diagnosed?¡± Ignoring her, Velvet continued. ¡°Does it matter if I get lost in the Dream Realm? As long as I wake up, I know where I am.¡± ¡°Ah yes, I suppose sssoooo.¡± She dragged the word, putting one hand over her mouth, as if she was pondering. ¡°Yet you aren¡¯t from here, are you? A ¡®Jub leaving her ¡®Wocky¡¯s side, missing the light.¡± ¡°Missing the lack of company.¡± Velvet said. ¡°A company completely coincidental, am I wrong?¡± ¡°There¡¯s plenty of coincidences that are coincidences and coincidences that aren¡¯t coincidences. And coincidences that can become non-coinci-¡± ¡°I doubt it¡¯s a coincidence.¡± ¡°Interrupting people is very rude.¡± There was no way no one was behind her encounter with the girl. Unfortunately, unless she used her magic or introduced herself, Velvet had no idea of who she was, and even less of who she worked with or for. ¡°Answering questions by derailing a conversation isn¡¯t polite either.¡± Velvet retorted, taking a step away from her. ¡°Now, if you excuse me, I¡¯ll be on my merry, aimless way.¡± ¡°Ah, don¡¯t take flight so soon, little birdie!¡± The girl said, jumping¡­ falling down, or, at least, letting go of the branch as if she slipped, but turning down in the air in a less than natural way, landing safely. Would a concussion from that height kill you? No, it¡¯s not that high¡­ but it would explain some of her behavior. ¡°Why? Did you perhaps forget to tell me something?¡± ¡°Words and puzzles aren¡¯t as fun if you get all the pieces at once.¡± ¡°You do get all the pieces in a puzzle though. The difficulty is in arranging the-¡± ¡°Shh, he¡¯s listening.¡± Raising her index finger to her mouth, the girl interrupted her. Not asking who or where, Velvet fell silent, eyes never leaving the girl. I don¡¯t hear steps, but¡­ yes, I can feel a faint, increasing presence. ¡°Noisy kids don¡¯t get to steal the show.¡± The girl said, turning around and taking a step away from her. ¡°So let¡¯s cover the stage for a short, revealing intermission.¡± She snapped her fingers, and instantly, a red, thick curtain appeared between them, making Velvet¡¯s feeling of being observed disappear completely. The curtain circled around her, apparently aimless, but, for someone like Velvet who liked annoying pranks, the movements were very similar to hers when she hid a surprise under a cloth, moving it away from the children¡¯s hands and eyes. Left, right, up, down¡­ it took less than half a minute for the ¡°snooper¡± to give up, not really trying anything else. Another sloth mage, I¡¯m sure of that. ¡°Closed curtains for the curious. Hello, spy.¡± A tired, exasperated sigh was the first thing coming from him. ¡°Frore, who did you pick up now?¡± Oh, she knew that sigh and that voice, it was from the official mage who stopped the novice¡¯s fight on the airship back then, when she was about to kill Ethra. Velvet was correct then, he was a sloth mage. ¡°A non-migratory bird who went for a stroll.¡± ¡°I doubt they have feathers.¡± ¡°Right. If it¡¯s featherless and it¡¯s biped, it¡¯s a man.¡± Frore said, hers a name she had heard from Alrai. Frore Tilleu was the whole name, in fact. Unless both of them were lying. ¡°Hey,¡± The one called spy by Frore said, speaking towards Velvet with a tone of awkward discomfort. ¡°Just so you know, this little kid is a seventy year old woman. And I don¡¯t mean that she¡¯s older than she looks, no. Granny in reality.¡± ¡­ Yeah, she had been aware of that the moment he said her name. Frore Tilleu was a family head, which meant two open Escas, and that took at least thirty years to reach. And, even if some mages did look younger than they were, she would have remembered seeing a little girl at the Selector¡¯s seats back then. And she didn¡¯t. ¡°Old might be the body, but young is the mind and spirit!¡± Frore retorted. ¡°Huh, normally that information makes them wake up from the fright.¡± He continued. ¡°So it¡¯s someone that already knows and remembers your name and position, as obscure and unwillingly hidden those are. An information mage, perhaps?¡± Urk. Now that almost frightened her enough to trigger her awakening. Underestimating another mage¡¯s intelligence always ended badly. ¡°Taller here than in reality, the busybody. Are those leg bones springs?¡± You really know how to push curiosity far, Frore, but I don¡¯t plan on waiting for you to give me all the pieces of this particular puzzle. Their back and forth soon became of zero interest for Velvet, who remained silent, decoding the message Frore was spelling under the first letter of each one her ¡°intermission¡± sentences, before stopping, triggering the exploding charms prematurely, the detonation ending her dream. She wasn¡¯t interested in picking back that particular fight. Nor dumb enough to wait for all the pieces to be set down on the proverbial table. For now, at least. Vindictive pettiness wasn¡¯t her middle name for nothing, after all. Chapter 168. Twelve minutes progress Velvet opened her eyes for the third time that evening. She stared at the ceiling for one second, then two, then three¡­ It was slightly different. Way more to the left that she was before. Did someone move her? ¡°Hyde¡­¡± Velvet hummed through a smile of gritted teeth. He was probably the culprit, since, if it had been anyone else, he would¡¯ve woken her up. And, if that wasn¡¯t enough proof, the remnants of spiderwebs clinging onto her clothes were. Strong enough to drag a human across the ground¡­ How fast did her little, fragile, smart spider grow? Her call didn¡¯t go unanswered, as skittering noises approached her. ¡°Awake and rested? Good, come here.¡± Pushing herself up, Velvet dusted off her clothes. ¡°Rested is a stretch, I didn¡¯t even get-¡± She closed her mouth shut, the sight of what Hyde had been doing stopping her sentence. She stared in silence, raising one hand to her chin in a pondering motion. ¡°How did you¡­ wait.¡± Moving her hands through her pockets and the containers shaping her bracelet, she checked their contents, or lack thereof. Frenese¡¯s book, gone. The Devil? Also gone. Her mind raced as she checked the remaining containers and her surroundings, her heartbeat jumping. Asides from Frenese, the container with the dead, mostly dissected mermaid wasn''t in her person, with nothing else lacking. She then checked the symbol ingrained around her Esca, the one representing Frenese¡¯s Deal. It was still there, and, through reaching inside it with her Esca, she could feel Frenese¡¯s presence and their bond. That means Frenese got unsealed as a side effect of Andras Apolyon¡¯s summon, and yet, just like he said, the pact wasn¡¯t broken by Him. Even so, that doesn''t mean he will cooperate for no reason. That last thought was because, right in the middle of the temple, at the same location she was previously, was a pool made of stomach flesh and guts. A very familiar type of flesh and guts. A pool of guts which ran across the ground and emerged out of the temple through the door, the slithering organs losing themselves in the distance, pumping slowly every few seconds, filling the pool with red, dirty water, until it spilled from its edges, painting the floor a watery red. Under the pool, remnants of a formation made with Hyde¡¯s golden thread linked the artifact still nailed to the ground that syphoned Dianthus¡¯ magic to the pool, or, more explicitly, to the thing inside. Because, floating inside the flesh pool, was a living, breathing mermaid. ¡°How long was I asleep?¡± Well, first things first, she needed to unpack the details, not that there were many, since what had happened while she napped was pretty damn obvious. ¡°Twelve minutes.¡± ¡°Such a hard, fast worker. Are you sure you are a spider, not an ant?¡± ¡°Spiders are hard working too.¡± ¡°Twelve minutes Hyde, how did you even convince Frenese to help?¡± He couldn¡¯t trade Velvet¡¯s petitions without her permission, which meant that he traded something else. ¡°I gave him the location of quite a few hidden delicacies.¡± A voice, not belonging to the demon spider, wormed itself into her mind as she squinted in Hyde¡¯s direction. ¡°You shut up until the questions are for you. And I have several.¡± She said, approaching the pool while glimpsing at the spiderweb formation, memorizing it. It was different from all the formations she had seen previously, using more straight lines than curves. So it breaks down Dianthus magic before using it? Remembering the paper piece she tossed at his leaking magic previously, which didn¡¯t stop growing leaves until she ¡°killed¡± it once again, she suspected it was to prevent the mermaid from doing exactly that.A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Yet this formation isn¡¯t any like I¡¯ve seen Hyde using before, so its origins are probably from the voice of corruption¡­ Hyde, sure you should be listening to it? Even when thinking that, Velvet was sure that if it had been her, she would¡¯ve also tried to do the formation to revive the mermaid. Both of them were from the knowledge Paradigm, no chance for them to ignore an opportunity like that. Grabbing the mermaid¡¯s wrist, Velvet checked her pulse, before moving her hands to her face, tilting the mermaid¡¯s face to the left and then right, before putting her fingers under her chin and raising her face, looking into her eyes. ¡°She has no reaction¡­ can¡¯t the soul be healed? Or is it because the link between soul and body broke, and that¡¯s what can¡¯t be fixed?¡± ¡°I¡¯d assume it¡¯s the link, since in principle Dianthus can heal from soul attacks.¡± Hyde answered, having asked himself the same thing before. The mermaid did breathe, and, when Velvet touched the fins on her ears, those flinched away. ¡°She¡¯s alive, but only because of muscle memory.¡± So a completely comatose revival. Velvet couldn¡¯t be feeding the mermaid in that state, so, unless there was a way to fix the missing soul, the mermaid¡¯s end would be to be dispatched for ingredients once again. It wasn¡¯t that she lacked access to souls, since they were abundant in the Death Realm, but from that to capture, modify and insert one into a body¡­ she lacked both the knowledge and the skills. Maybe with Frenese¡¯s help? The Devil surely knew some tricks, right? ¡°Dianthus can use soul magic.¡± Once again, the Corruption of Fate interrupted her thoughts. ¡°I am going to free him, it¡¯s part of my plans, stop insisting. In fact, I would be on my way to him right now if you two hadn¡¯t been messing with my mermaid.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a lie. If we hadn¡¯t advanced with this, the first thing you would¡¯ve done upon waking up would be experimenting with trying to revive the mermaid. We simply worked so you wouldn¡¯t.¡± ¡­ It got her. Velvet clicked her tongue, not denying the undeniable accusations. ¡°Fine. But that¡¯s not all.¡± Since she didn¡¯t have someone to look at when speaking, she strolled around the pool, after lowering the mermaid back into the water. ¡°You were the one preventing me from hearing the Chained Man¡¯s true name, right? Why?¡± ¡°That name no longer belongs to him alone, you can even think of it as wired.¡± ¡°Wired?¡± ¡°Like infected, parasitized by someone else.¡± The voice explained. ¡°To gods, Deriliams, and several other beings, names carry a connection, you know that.¡± ¡°I do, yes.¡± Like Lothrigern, just saying His name once was enough for Him to locate her. ¡°That isn¡¯t really a problem, since most of them can¡¯t appear at your position, their powers and sizes too immense to cross the Material Realm, or any Realm without breaking space and reality while doing so, aftermath of which you¡¯re about to see.¡± ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± ¡°That grasshopper is more delicate than¡­ than¡­¡± The voice fell silent for several seconds, and Velvet sweared hearing an annoyed groan. ¡°Give me a name for the other one.¡± ¡°... The Devil¡¯s Father?¡± ¡°Not offensive enough.¡± ¡°He almost killed me, I¡¯d rather not. Also, instead of a grasshopper, Lothrigern looks more like a mantis.¡± ¡°He hops and it¡¯s green enough. Anyway, Devil¡¯s papa made a mess across all the Realms between him and him.¡± It made emphasis on the second him, clarifying that it referred to the Chained Man. ¡°Just to reach the dreamy prison. And then left without fixing anything.¡± ¡°He can afford to do so, no one dares to send any complaint after all. But, usually, most beings with a linking name won¡¯t bother crossing Realms. If you know their names, they will know about you, they will know your exact position, and they will get access to your body at best, your mind at worst, yet they won''t make the effort to chase or punish you. Usually.¡± ¡°Lothrigern is an exception then.¡± ¡°A big one, he knows how to have his avatars cross Realms and dimensions without making a single ripple, and abuses the hell out of that privilege. A transdimensional plague, that¡¯s what he is.¡± Ignoring the insults directed to the Deriliam that could appear next to her in this exact moment, Velvet continued the conversation. ¡°But He isn¡¯t the only one, I assume?¡± ¡°Indeed. You should be grateful I stopped that name from reaching your mind, because soon, our annoying Father of Devils it''s going to snitch on that bastard, and he is going to come hunt down everyone that knows his name.¡± ¡°And if that grasshopper is an insect plague, then that mutt is a one-eyed, rotten curse.¡± Chapter 169. The nothing above the anything ¡°One eyed curse¡­¡± The title didn¡¯t sound like any of the Deriliams she knew the existence of, which now pushed that number up to six, with only four known by name. ¡°What¡¯s he the creator of?¡± Maybe it was the way the Corruption talked about them, with an absolute lack of respect, or maybe it was the fact that she didn¡¯t yet know that one, what made her drop the tone of reverence. ¡°Of the type of curses that transform humans into man-eating beasts, mostly. Like vampires and lycanthropes.¡± ¡°Lycanthropes¡­? You mean werewolves and the sort? ¡­ Aren¡¯t those fictional?¡± ¡°You are a mage.¡± ¡°Yes, but I had seen mages before becoming one! And heard about fairies and sea monsters from people that had seen them! Can¡¯t say the same about the others!¡± In fact, the only times she¡¯d seen depictions of vampires were in the romance novels owned by a pair of women where Velvet had worked as a housemaid. Oh, and Creftalia had books with werewolves on the cover. ¡°You can thank the Inquisition for that, and blame them for what it entails.¡± ¡°I can do both after we wake up our sleeping hero.¡± Velvet said, kneeling next to the center of the formation, where the other part of the hexagonal cylinder stabbing Dianthus¡¯ chest was. Folding a sheet of paper into a triangle, she began scrapping the symbols, more precisely, the parts connecting the cylinder to the rest of the formation, responsibles for the siphoning of magic. There was no fancy way of removing a formation, at least, not without using magic, which she couldn¡¯t afford to waste now. Taking the flesh from the Chained Man had brought her way too close for comfort to the limit of her miasma tolerance. She had enough to secure Dianthus¡¯ awakening, but after doing so, she had to purify herself, probably on one of the streams running across the pocket dimension. Click. Just as she finished scrapping the formation, the black cylinder jolted, its shape protruding out from the floor. Velvet poked at it with the paper at first, and, when it didn¡¯t react like the one inside Dianthus, she pinched the top with the thumb and the index, pulling it up like a misbehaved kitten. It¡­ was longer that she expected, forcing her to get up and raise her arm. And, as she was suspecting the upcoming need of taking out her broom and flying even higher, the lower half of the cylinder swayed as a wave, before dividing itself in six vertical, triangular fragments, each one undulating next to the others, like a geometric octopus. It didn¡¯t move fast enough for Velvet to toss it away just in case, nor did it try to reach out for her, simply restricting itself to sway side to side. Once again, she poked at it with the folded paper sheet, just that this time she aimed at the tendrils, dragging the paper¡¯s corner down. They did react, but only by staying attached to the paper as she lowered it, like a magnet. After testing and proving that it didn¡¯t show any hostility, she took back the paper, rolling it like a piece of rope, before tying it around the cylinder¡¯s non-moving half and dragging it down, binding the tendrils together. She then repeated the same motions two more times, keeping it still before coiling the bendable parts, making it look more like a hand-held bag than the artifact who brought down the Chosen One. A pretty ridiculous bag, if the snort coming from the Corruption of Fate was anything to go by. ¡°It¡¯s easier to move around this way, and safer.¡± She defended. ¡°I would¡¯ve braided it, keeping it straight like a staff.¡± Hyde said, crawling up her dress and hair before reaching her hat. ¡°Yeah, you could toss it to Frenese like a stick that way, have him carry it for you.¡± With a last check-up to the comatose, soulless mermaid, making sure it wouldn¡¯t die before they were back, Velvet took her leave from the temple, stepping outside. She wasn¡¯t worried about the previous dangers in the Death Realm, since, with an eternally hungry Frenese on the loose, the ones not able to escape had long been devoured. Good. Straight path towards Dianthus. ¡­ Not needing to take any detours this time, she reached the other temple way sooner. It hadn¡¯t changed at all, a difference from the rest of the pocket dimension, who now had cracks all across it.Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. ¡°The result of that one crossing all the way from the depths of Hell to his dream.¡± The Corruption had explained while they walked. ¡°No wonder then, aside from Lothrigern, that the Deriliam don¡¯t move much.¡± The memory of the Deriliam that had grabbed her, the one with a thousand hands, breaking down the space and the sky to reach her was still fresh in her mind. ¡°Only two can. Or, only two bothered to find a non-disturbing way to do it, just to fuck around with humans more easily. Trust me, the more detached one of them is from humans, the better.¡± Falling silent, it continued before Velvet spoke again. ¡°Both gods and deriliams should just stick to their high thrones and look at humans from above, not mingle with them.¡± ¡°You do have a worrisome grudge against them.¡± ¡°You have no idea.¡± Pressing her hands against the temple¡¯s door, Velvet pushed them open. ¡°Yet here you are, needing the help of the one working with one of Them to save your little soldier.¡± ¡°Think of it as a truce between two parties sharing the same goal and enemy.¡± The goal to release the Chained Man. ¡°And after that?¡± Velvet asked, walking down the aisle, sidestepping around the glowing tendrils emerging from Dianthus. ¡°If you even manage to get that far.¡± It clarified. ¡°Then, after that you¡¯ll have Dianthus¡¯ blade in your throat.¡± ¡°A very compelling motive to revive him.¡± ¡°The world ends if you don¡¯t, and you with it.¡± ¡°I. Know. That.¡± She said, next to Dianthus'' open coffin, as she uncoiled the artifact. ¡°You really choose your ally nicely, making sure he needs to remain alive if we want to survive. If Lothrigern is a bug by your standards, then what does that make you? A parasite?¡± ¡°I am even less than that. I am nothing, I have nothing and I can do nothing. I¡¯m merely a voice in your head, and even that shouldn¡¯t be possible.¡± As Velvet raised the artifact above Dianthus, its tendrils now free, it continued. ¡°And so, any chance I could possess fall in teaming up with the one that can do anything.¡± Holding the top of the cylinder with both hands up high, Velvet slammed it down, stabbing Dianthus¡¯ chest on the same place where the other half of the artifact was nailed down, its tendrils coiling around it¡¯s counterpart¡¯s, tangling and merging between each other in an dance of flesh, bones, and a black, strange material. Blinding lights flashed from Dianthus¡¯ body, as the pulsating tendrils of energy retreated back inside him, healing the gaping hole in his chest, where his destroyed heart was. The artifact finished merging too, condensing in size, now a black, hexagonal cylinder as long as her forearm and twice its width. A faint line still made visible the two halves, shaped into a string of symbols she didn¡¯t recognize. Yet she put it into one of her pockets. It was hers now. Putting a hand on the edge of the coffin, Velvet leaned forward, looking down at Dianthus, who showed no reaction. ¡°Dianthus?¡± She asked, before moving her free hand to his neck when getting no response, checking his pulse. He didn¡¯t have one. ¡°You have to be kid-¡± Before finishing her sentence, her world became a blur for one second, until her back was slammed against the cushioned bottom of the now empty coffin. Well, not empty, she was there now. And, above her, a shit eating grin that Velvet very much did not miss or appreciate looked down at her. Dianthus leaned over her a bit more, propped up by both hands against the coffin edges, blocking the multicolored light falling from the glass window. "Hmm..." He said, tilting his head to the side. "I can see my reflection in your eyes. Even after a week like this, I do look gorgeous, don''t I?" Velvet looked up at him with an emotionless face, trying really hard to not flip at him after the slam he just did. Oh, how much she would love to blow his face off right now¡­ alas, it was too close for a safe explosion. So, she followed his game, meeting his gaze. Well, his gloating wasn''t exactly wrong, since his pale hair helped reflect the myriad of colors surrounding him, coupled to his week-long nap that didn''t dirty him at all, probably due to magic means, and instead made him look like some recently awakened sleeping beauty from children''s tales. But she wasn''t going to tell him that; Dianthus'' didn''t need anyone¡¯s help to bloat his ego, after all. So, she returned his grin, making an exaggerated dreamy sigh. "It only makes me wonder how gorgeous Igern would look in your place..." Dianthus'' smile flinched. "He is the kinda guy that wakes up angry, and, the idea of having him pinning you down is a nice fantasy, but the kind that translates to reality as a horrifying scenario." "I can fix him." "You¡¯ll just make him worse, and that¡¯s hard to do." ¡°Jealous he¡¯s hotter? Now that I think about it, Igern¡¯s black, long hair would look way better under these lights than yours. So get off me.¡± ¡°He¡¯s just edgier, not hotter by any means¡­¡± Dianthus grumbled, moving away from her, before grabbing her waist and pulling both of them away from the coffin in another single, damned, sudden, incredibly fast movement that made her heartbeat flinch and her mood worsen. Oh, how badly did she want to slap his grin off. But, whatever, her deal was with the Director and the Prophet, not him, so, once Dianthus put a soul into the mermaid, she would simply send him back to the Mergifari on his own. And her? Well, she planned to spend some days on Cardomos¡¯ pocket dimension, where no one could spy on her, to finish her staff and craft some charms. Chapter 170. Kingless clues Splinters flew everywhere, the door smashing against the floor, the hinges dragging parts of the wall with them, scattering dust everywhere. ¡°Guess you forgot how doors work, and never bothered to remember how.¡± Ceres said, not turning around to face the intruder, without really needing to do so, since Winter crossed the room in a blink, grabbing and slamming him against the wall, the back of his head bouncing back and hitting the concrete behind him. Yet the impact didn¡¯t reach him, softened by the feathers growing from within and across the wall, replacing the surface completely. Wings fluttered against Ceres¡¯ back, as hundreds of faces behind the feathers turned around to stare at Winter. Faces with big, round, pitch black, bird eyes. Eyes that stared at Winter emotionless, or, as emotionless as the usual expression of an owl could be. Yet her skin prickled, small feathers protruding from within. Not only from within her skin, but from within her bones too. They didn''t get too deep, Winter''s own magical defenses slowing their propagation and the feathers being more a threat than an outright attack, since she still had Ceres grabbed from the neck. ¡°Quit playing dumb, you know why I¡¯m here!¡± Ceres raised his eyebrows in surprise. ¡°Do I?¡± Winter tightened the hold on his throat until his smug smile disappeared. She knew how much pressure a human neck could take before snapping, and she still had a small, minuscule margin. ¡°I believed you to be smarter.¡± She said, eyes moving left and right for an instant, not missing the other two mages hidden in the room¡¯s shadows. ¡°Guess how hard I''m going to choke you if you don''t tell me where Dianthus is. The answer will blow your head clean off.¡± ¡°I doubt the clean part.¡± One of the mages said with a click, the click of a finger pressing against a gun''s trigger, yet not hard enough to fire. Winter didn¡¯t need to look behind the shadow to recognize the mage, since the mages who bothered to keep company to the Mergifari¡¯s Disappointment amounted to a whopping number of two. Tristan, hidden behind the shadows at her right and Fermidia Sarcos, captain of the Pioneer Three, currently on vacation on her left. Fermidia was the one pointing at her with a rifle, one without the sigils that kept Winter away from using hers. Not a step too far for her to easily move away if Fermidia were to shoot, nor a step too close for Winter to lunge at her before she managed to press the trigger. Now, that didn¡¯t mean that Winter couldn¡¯t take her, not even close. It was simply an observation, one that Winter used to assess each one of their threat levels, and how she should proceed if things got violent. Tristan didn¡¯t move, nor got up from her seat, yet, next to her, a machine whirled to life, the circular light on its ¡°face¡± glowing. Around three meters in height, heavy and bulky, the bronze of its exoskeleton reflected under its own light. On its hands, or, where hands usually tended to be, two contraptions, one for each hand, targeted her position. With multiple metallic cylinders, it resembled a mixture of a nock gun and a turret, with cylinders starting to spin without making any noise. Winter wasn¡¯t fond of machines, or automatons, as tinkerers and mechanists liked to call the humanoid ones. Not because they didn¡¯t bleed, or show any emotion, but because Winter lacked the skills to understand what they were supposed to do. To her, fighting a machine was like fighting a surprise box. Until it fired, she didn¡¯t know what to expect. Bullets? Poison gas? Electric shocks? Confetti? The spinning, hollow cylinders looked like gun barrels, but, to her, most cylinders looked like gun barrels, and she wasn¡¯t going to make a mistake by following her own bias. But, at least she knew that the more humanoid an automaton was, the more they moved like humans. The size, weight and lack of most joints means it¡¯s slow. So, I need to take Fermidia down first, then the robot. Udulluay is impossible to kill, but not a heavy hitter, so I can block their attacks, and Tristan won¡¯t be a problem without the machine. The thought made her smile. What a joke of formation, not even a single tank to restrain her for a few seconds. Not like Ceres could afford anything better. ¡°Aren¡¯t you smug?¡± Fermidia said. ¡°You¡¯re not a block of ice, able to float even after crashing down.¡± ¡°I''m confident in my chances.¡± Winter said, not sparing her more than a small side glance¡­ and not really understanding the ice metaphor. ¡°I can cut your arm off before you press that trigger.¡± ¡°I''d like to see you try.¡± ¡°You won''t get to see it.¡± Winter clarified, taking another short glance at Tristan, who hadn''t said anything yet. ¡°Don''t look at me, I don''t do battle banter.¡± ¡°I didn''t look at you for that.¡± I can take them. She thought. ¡°Are you two that hurried in tossing your life away from this¡­¡± Raising Ceres higher by the neck, she made a grimace that could only be understood as disgust. ¡°Trash?¡± ¡°One woman¡¯s trash, another one-¡± Ceres started, before Winter strangled him even further. ¡°The only thing I want coming from your mouth is Dianthus¡¯ location. Nothing else.¡± She also wanted to know how Ceres even managed to do so, or, who was the one who did it. When Ceres didn¡¯t answer, Winter simply let out a soft sigh. ¡°I¡¯m not fond of torture, but tongues really get looser when those you love are chopped to pieces and left to bleed ou-¡± Fermidia pressed the trigger, yet that wasn¡¯t what cut off Winter¡¯s sentence, but she herself when summoning and throwing an ice axe in Fermidia¡¯s direction, breaking the bullet in half and burying itself deep into the rifle¡¯s barrel. ¡°As before.¡± Under Fermidia¡¯s spell, the gun¡¯s wound closed off between spasming seizures, the metal merging back together. Once the spell touched the ice axe, it broke down into white dust. Even the bullet went back, as if the axe never had hit it, continuing its path towards Winter, who turned Ceres around, putting his right shoulder between her and the bullet. ¡°As after.¡± Fermidia said, the bullet disappearing as Winter took a step forward, appearing right where she was before, the bullet crashing against the wall.This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°Again.¡± The bullet spasmed again in a blue light, going back on its path. ¡°Echoes.¡± Tristan said. The automata activated, the silent whirls turning on, as the bullet multiplied in a semicircle around Winter. I knew it wasn¡¯t a gun! Winter couldn¡¯t help but praise herself, unworried by the rain of bullets rushing against her. ¡°Acerna. Thousand Wars Armory.¡± A silvery circle lit under her, marking the start of the Structuralization. Lines of pure light ran up through the air, drawing silhouettes of swords, spears, battle axes, maces¡­ Every single one of them jolted as their shape became more and more detailed, each one desiring to be the one to be held. Even when the bullets weren¡¯t waiting for her, Winter made her choice with ease, her hands caressing the handle before switching to a firm grip, unearthing the weapon from the depths of the Primeval Sea into reality. To shape a concept, and construct it. You will do for today. She thought, before- Before a pair of cards crossed the air next to her, nailing the real bullet to the wall, making the copies disappear. The cards didn¡¯t cut the bullet, no. They just held it from each side, pressuring it enough to keep it sandwiched between them, as they remained stuck to the wall with care. They didn¡¯t even bend, not under the bullet, and not against the wall. ¡°Luck is certainly an interesting skill to have, isn¡¯t it?¡± If the room was dimly lit before Winter entered crashing down the door, now the only light came from the cracks under the silhouette of the being, if it could be called that, that was now creeping under the umbral. ¡°Allowing you to be part of interesting situations in strange times.¡± ¡°Private situations, if I may.¡± Fermidia said, turning her body to face Siberiald Ropertti more than Winter. An exact 75/25 partition between each one. Something she would take offense to, were she unaware of who the monster in front of her was. A monster who had to bend over, tilting its torso to the side so that it could fit through the door, one hand touching the upper frame and long, wild hair cascading down its back. Ready to pounce. Winter noted, squinting at the intruder. She considered herself the strongest, that was a fact, but strength wasn¡¯t the same as danger, and, right now, the most dangerous mage of the Mergifari was metaphorically knocking at their door. Tilting his head to the side, Siberiald laughed, as if Fermidia had just told the funniest joke of the century. ¡°Privacy deserves a closed door, under lock and key, doesn¡¯t it?¡± He motioned to the broken door at the floor, his long, way too long fingers making a wave, the middle one and the index still holding some more cards. ¡°A secret can¡¯t be kept in a hallway, can it?¡± ¡°Shut up.¡± Winter said through gritted teeth. ¡°I have no intention of wasting time on a clown. Leave or I¡¯ll have no issue claiming the reward the Grahams put over your head.¡± ¡°Oh? Even if this jester-¡± He made sure to correct the word a bit too much. ¡°Can save some of your time? Luck cares not for how well hidden secrets are.¡± If it had been any other mage, Winter would suspect him of trying to get Arhontissa¡¯s favour and shelter, since the Roperttis had played a big part in the murder of Cornelius Graham, the heir of the main mage family of Charlampia. But he wasn''t any other mage. The only times Siberiald moved were when it was entertaining for him to play a part and nothing else. Just like he had said, he was a jester, an occupation belonging to the king¡¯s and queen¡¯s entertainers. A funchaser. Siberiald was a kingless jester, with no one to entertain but himself. Or maybe it was simply that normal, well-adjusted mages did not understand his humor. Winter certainly didn¡¯t, and she was sure everyone but his freak show of children shared her feelings. So, if she were to suspect why Siberiald would offer ¡°help¡±, the answer was amusement. Now, if his current amusement included backstabbing, Winter wasn¡¯t interested in finding out like Cornelius Graham did. ¡°I won¡¯t give you a second warning.¡± Siberiald laughed, his upper half trembling, twisting and turning the cards around his fingers. ¡°Not interested in using that beginner¡¯s luck?¡± Interested in bashing your head in, actually. Winter didn¡¯t answer, having already done the polite thing of telling him to leave two times. Instead, she returned to a combat position, determined to take three mages and a Devil instead of two. ¡°Is the answer on the cards you threw?¡± Tristan was the one speaking this time, to Winter¡¯s dismay. She preferred fighting to conversations any time of the day, so now that she was already in the mood for combat, the constant words and interruptions were bothering her. ¡°They could be. Good gamblers don¡¯t look at the cards while dealing them.¡± Getting up from the chair, Tristan dusted off her dress, turning to Winter. ¡°You won¡¯t feel threatened by a defiance mage walking close to you, right?¡± She wouldn¡¯t. Magic and technology matched pretty terribly, so any mage dabbling in both was weaker than any other without their trinkets. Even if she didn¡¯t show it, Tristan should be the one feeling threatened by getting close to her. ¡°Take the jacket off.¡± Tristan did so, removing, folding and leaving the brown jacket on top of the chair, before walking towards Winter with her palms open and visible. Leaving your back open to Siberiald, Winter couldn¡¯t help but notice. A single card thrown and¡­ It depended on him finding more entertaining the current situation than the alternative. Not like he would have the last laugh were he to try to backstab Tristan. As she had said, Winter was not threatened by Tristan getting close in the slightest, so her focus was still on the clown. She liked fair fights, and wasn¡¯t willing to let him ruin her moment. If push went to shove, she would protect Tristan. In fact, now that she realized it, maybe that¡¯s where Tristan¡¯s confidence in showing her back to Siberiald was. The weaker a mage, the more they schemed to grow. But her scheme worked, reaching the wall without anyone stabbing anything into her back, raising her hand to remove one of the stuck cards. ¡°Don¡¯t recommend the upper one, answers don¡¯t tend to be on the surface.¡± Siberiald said. ¡°Gambler¡¯s tip.¡± If the choice had been hers, she would¡¯ve picked the upper one. But, Tristan listened to the advice, picking the lower one, letting the bullet they were retaining fall to the ground, clicking carelessly as it rolled across the floor. She turned the card in her hand, looking at the picture. ¡°Judgement.¡± Judgement of who? Dianthus¡¯? There were some mages who enjoyed playing vigilante, but the one who did it killed an official mage in an instant¡­ ¡°Don¡¯t try to be the one guessing it, just give it to Carthagia.¡± The underlying mockery of Ceres'' tone made her want to strangle him again, but he was right. If the card was correct, Carthagia would know the answer. And if they lied to her, well¡­ next time she wouldn¡¯t bother asking. And so, with the card in hand, Winter took her leave, Siberiald stepping back to allow her passage, both of them not taking their eyes off of one another, at least until Winter got far away enough. Massaging his abused throat, Ceres leaned against the wall, Udulluay appearing from within the wall to rest on his shoulder. ¡°The smell of blood brought you here. Searching for someone?¡± Siberiald grinned. ¡°Why, yes! That girl you took, I expected this intense scent of blood to belong to her after her little vacation! Alas, you can¡¯t always win, and this one gamble was my loss.¡± ¡°But a true gambler never stops playing.¡± Siberiald continued. ¡°Every try gets me closer to the jackpot. Enjoy my interference as a lucky encounter.¡± ¡°Will do.¡± Since Winter left, and they made sure Siberiald had really left, Ceres spent some seconds recovering his lost breath and calming his throat, before going to the other part of the wall, picking up the other card. ¡°Which one is it?¡± Tristan asked, putting back her jacket. ¡°Guess.¡± After Tristan guessed by lifting a big wrench, staring straight into his eyes, he cleared his throat and rectified. ¡°The Moon. Not an answer about the past, but about the future.¡± Chapter 171. Liability Volunteer When the Corruption of Fate told her that Dianthus could move spirits around, she expected him to use one spell to trap and move them, the same one most mages used to do the same damn thing. A spell she could replicate. But no, he simply brute forced it along the way, taking a spirit he picked (at least he waited for her to agree on the one chosen) into his body, something that would¡¯ve forced a possession on a normal mage. Something she couldn¡¯t use to catch her own spirits later, not having the immunity to everything that Dianthus had. ¡°Why do you look so disappointed?¡± ¡°Because I am.¡± ¡°Well, not everyone can be as perfect as I am.¡± For someone so supposedly perfect, you keep messing things up constantly¡­ She hadn¡¯t wondered why none of the Arhontissian novice mages liked to be in the Chosen One¡¯s company. From the official mage Cardomos had murdered to reach him, to the number of life threatening situations he got involved because of the law of fuck around and find out, Dianthus was not someone to stick with if someone wanted a safe, long life. He¡¯s an elephant in a porcelain shop on a good day, and a liability on a bad one. That¡¯s why she didn¡¯t originally plan on keeping him with her. And yet¡­ she wanted those ghosts¡­ It wasn¡¯t like she couldn¡¯t craft her staff without catching more, since she still had the ghost in the mirror; she simply wanted to use all the free resources she could get her hands on. Why leave all these ghosts for the next mage to come here? It was first come, first served! She wasn¡¯t known for sharing! ¡°You¡¯re going to drill a hole in my back from staring.¡± Dianthus said without turning his head around, walking in front of her. Correction, she was looking at the mist coming from his body, the one from the ghost, still trying to find any way to move them in a similar manner herself. They were going back to the temple where the ritual had taken place, and back where she had left the mermaid. Now, she doubted that Dianthus had been there beforehand, but, since the Voice of Corruption had pretty much abandoned her, it was probably the thing now guiding Dianthus. ¡­ Dianthus was now having several dilemmas, some of them caused by Velvet herself, and some with her as a consequence. The most important one was the fact that the Director, and, with her, some Mergifari mages, knew about his companion¡¯s identity. And there was zero chance of them ignoring him after this. In addition, the Director was one of the two beings he couldn¡¯t read the mind of, and, based on Velvet¡¯s own thoughts, the Prophet, the one who probably found out about his companion first, was also a mind reader, something he wanted to keep hidden. ¡°Can¡¯t you see if it knows?¡± He asked the Corruption. ¡°Not unless you get close to it, which would make the idea meaningless.¡± Dianthus raised a hand to his chin to think, but when Velvet¡¯s eyes and mind flinched at that, recording his movements, he changed to scratch his face. Miss knowledge mage, I¡¯m trying to have a conversation here¡­ Something he was sure about was that Velvet didn¡¯t know about his mind reading ability¡­ yet. The fact that she had previously met a mind reader meant that she knew about them existing, so, if he messed up his words or actions, she would connect the dots.Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. Trying to not answer her thoughts or make comments about things she never had said was the obvious, but so was not addressing properly the issues he wanted to address. Namely, why the fuck was Frenese free? And why, pray fucking tell, was she not begging for his help to restrain him again?! Did she forget- no, because she was a knowledge mage- about what the damned Devil had done? He ate their companions alive, and mindbroke the rest! What was her plan once Dianthus left? To ask Frenese to pretty please enter his book prison before exiting? Making a Deal with him while he was sealed, only to release him back into the depths of hell where he belonged at the end was one thing. And having him roaming around, eating, was another. This wasn¡¯t some pet that Velvet clumsily let loose, no, it was a Gluttony Devil, a being forever starving. If gluttony mages were known for going cannibal pretty quickly, beings from the same Paradigm who weren''t ever humans dug human meat from their birth. And any other kind of meat, since they were more about quantity than quality. Since he woke up, he¡¯d been hoping for Velvet to at least think about the issue, but she was way more worried about managing to catch more ghosts, all while Frenese kept getting way too close for comfort every now and then. He and Velvet had a Devil''s Pact, so the Devil was aware of Velvet¡¯s location, never approaching enough to trigger her paper figurines, which were scouting her surroundings constantly. But not far enough to escape Dianthus¡¯ radar. Frenese wouldn¡¯t harm Velvet, but, to the Devil, Dianthus was an unlimited food source. One he had tasted back then. Craving a second feast? Forget it, if Velvet didn¡¯t plan on including him on the issue, he was including himself. He stopped walking, and Velvet did the same, without taking a step further on accident, recalling her paper figurines back to her. There was a chance of him wanting to silence me to keep the number of mages aware of the Corruption of Fate controlled. Oh well. She thought, smiling at his back. That¡¯s not the issue here! Don¡¯t pin this on me! It wasn¡¯t like he didn¡¯t think about the problems that Velvet knowing his secret could cause. She wasn¡¯t a strong mage, and he was ab-so-lu-te-ly sure that, if she got threatened enough, Velvet would sell Dianthus in a blink. And it wasn¡¯t like the girl didn¡¯t have enemies, some of them with reasons. Even so, he had never considered the option of killing her. For that particular thing, at least. He wasn¡¯t the kind to betray the one that saved him, after all, and yet¡­ Depending on her answer about Frenese¡¯s freedom, he might choose to beat some sense into her. Seconds passed in silence between them, until Velvet got tired of waiting for him. ¡°Something wrong?¡± You tell me! ¡°Something is following us, or someone, depending on what term you want to use.¡± ¡°Depends on how smart they are.¡± Velvet said, adding to herself, Didn¡¯t Frenese eat everything here already? Maybe he is saving something from later. Even so, with a bigger predator on the loose, none of the previous dangers should have something like hunting on their minds. ¡°It¡¯s something we¡¯ve met before. Emphasis on we. Something whose name starts with F and ends with Enese, with an R between those.¡± Velvet smile flinched. ¡°Oh.¡± Ugh, why did Frenese need to get close now? Couldn¡¯t he wait for Dianthus to dip first? I wanted to keep his freedom a secret¡­ not that it was possible, since the Corruption probably snitched already. Forget the maybe, he was SO beating some sense into her. ¡°Oh? Is that everything you have to say?¡± He took a step towards her, putting his hands on his hips, imitating a disappointed tutor¡­ and letting Velvet see his hands, since she teleported two paper figurines right next to his face the moment he moved back. ¡°Don¡¯t get trigger happy now, I¡¯d prefer getting answers before choosing if beating you up, but we can do it the other way around.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you cocky for someone who just lost?¡± ¡°Lost against an Archmage. I can punt you into the sun without breaking a sweat.¡± Even when he would very much prefer not to. It wasn¡¯t his fault that Velvet distrusted him so much¡­ or maybe it was the flirting, some girls he knew also got pretty hostile when he teased them¡­ and some guys¡­ Ok, maybe he did have some fault. And now Velvet was showing some teeth with her smile, so she was pissed. But, since she still hadn¡¯t attacked, he could fix it. ¡°What I¡¯m asking is, what¡¯s your feeding plan for the man-eating Devil?¡± Velvet didn¡¯t relax her position, nor her figurines, but chose to answer. ¡°I have a present for someone very high on the Mergifari¡¯s command, so, I¡¯m going to ask to be allowed entry to the Unnamed Forest in return.¡± One of the beings that can cure Nereus resides there, after all. Chapter 172. Aim for four Dianthus fell silent after that. Not because he had nothing to say, but because he was thinking. Thinking about the Unnamed Forest of the Mergifari. He knew what it was, despite never having entered. According to the Mergifari¡¯s laws, only family heads could enter alone. Official mages had to enter in groups of five, and novice mages were banned from taking a single step in. Not like they tried to. In the mage¡¯s world, idiots died fast. Unless a mage was completely and rightfully aware of their chances, reckless actions tended to end in tragedy. Dianthus was the most reckless mage for a reason, and that reason was that he was shielded from most consequences, if not every single one. Something not shared by anyone else. That¡¯s why he never considered Velvet¡¯s approach. And yet¡­ For him, the Unnamed Forest wasn¡¯t a place of interest. Not the forest, at least, for the Queen of Arhontissa was investigating the barrier dividing it from the rest of the Mergifari, the habitable zone. He knew the reason, and so did Igern, as much as he disliked that fact. Igern wouldn¡¯t be rushing his death in exchange from power had he simply remained ignorant. Some things were predestined to happen. If everything depended on chance, the need for prophets wouldn¡¯t exist. Igern and Velvet were prime examples of that, both of them advancing with the options fate had dealt them. He knew Igern¡¯s, but Velvet¡¯s were still a mystery. Yes, Lothrigern had helped her, but, His actions were a consequence of whatever happened with Velvet, not the reason nor the cause. What they had was a mutually beneficial accord. Back to the Unnamed Forest, unlike the Queen, Velvet was interested in the forest, not the barrier. But, the barrier was there for a reason, for the Unnamed Forest was the most dangerous place in the world barring the depths of Permafrost, both for very different yet similar reasons. If one was devoid of any kind of life, the other was far too filled with it. And, the more life inhabited a place, the more death accompanied it, something both of those places shared, next to no one going deep enough into them to reach their ending. As what awaited on the depths of Permafrost was a mystery, so was the hearth of the Unnamed Forest. Even so, the Queen believes that the Director reached the Unnamed Forest¡¯s heart back then, together with the founders of the Mergifari. But, she also believes that, whatever power lies there, it never would be compatible with the blessing of Arhontissa, and so she has no interest in chasing after it. Dianthus recalled. But, Velvet¡­ does she know? Or is she only chasing down that cure? Chasing different goals or having an end in sight? Thoughts were a messy, confusing thing, and Velvet, as a knowledge mage, had several trains of thoughts at any moment, most of which he couldn¡¯t keep track of. With her, he needed to nudge the one he wanted to read, either with questions or getting lucky. And Dianthus was not exactly a lucky person. Frenese intending to take a bite out of him was not how he wanted his day to end. Speaking of the Devil, or Devils, they were as powerful as family heads, maybe even more, in the cases where they had the buff from being the rulers of a Hell Realm. Currently, Frenese was weaker after being sealed for thousands of years, losing his status as a Realm Ruler. It didn¡¯t matter if he was eating everything with flesh on the pocket dimension, since the living beings there weren¡¯t satiating nor powerful enough, since, if that were the case, Frenese wouldn¡¯t be haunting him. And it wasn¡¯t like he could leave in search of more lively places. If he were to leave on his own in his current state the Director would crush him in a blink. The Prophet wouldn¡¯t let a threat like him run wild around the Mergifari, and neither would Udulluay, the Devil Realm Ruler of the Mergifari.This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. But, with Velvet¡¯s plan on letting him access the Unnamed Forest, he would recover his original power faster, without the danger of becoming Udulluay on the way. So, he depended on Velvet to take him back into the book, and let him out to eat. With that decision, Velvet wanted to kill two birds with one stone. No, not two. Using her Devil¡¯s Deal she could map the Unnamed Forest without personally entering, not to say to make Frenese bring her materials from there. After all, he would show some gratitude for the free food, right? ¡°All the power in the world is nothing when the brain doesn¡¯t catch up as fast, hm?¡± Now it was Velvet¡¯s turn for mockery, her expression becoming the truest depiction of the Smug Face of Triumph, as she took a step closer to him, raising a hand towards his face and pushing his chin up with a finger, closing Dianthus¡¯ mouth. Then, she laughed, sidestepping around Dianthus and continuing walking, leaving him behind. ¡°You know? Things like these are why most mage families raise their own knowledge mages, and don¡¯t take any outsider ones!¡± He shouted at her back. ¡°Gaslighting ass Paradigm, I fucking swear.¡± ¡°You¡¯re still putting that soul inside my mermaid, am I wrong?¡± ¡°Technically, it¡¯s Doireann¡¯s, my friend and companion whom you stole from by force.¡± Not like he really cared about who kept the thing, and, knowing Velvet, Doireann was better off buying another mermaid. ¡°It was a theft in self defense, she can buy it back if she needs it so badly. And, if it bothers you that much, you can even be the intermediary.¡± Yes, Doireann was definitely better off buying a different one! ¡­ The soul transfer process went smoothly. Since the mermaid was just an empty husk, there wasn¡¯t any sort of opposition from the original soul. Kneeling next to the flesh pool, Velvet held the mermaid¡¯s face, staring at her. The nictitating membrane works, and she follows my movements¡­ Blue scaled fingers with razor sharp claws reached for her face, grabbing one of her locks of hair. She shows curiosity, and can follow up with movements, so her brain is working. Then, the mermaid opened her mouth, slurring a mixture of melodic notes, broken segments of a song. A faint sleepiness caressed Velvet, not accomplishing anything. She can access magic, but has no understanding of how. The original souls¡¯ memories might be damaged, or be too complicated for the new soul to understand yet. Magical and mythological beasts were almost impossible to keep captive in adulthood, unless they had somehow agreed to it, like demons did. Dragon keepers like Irsen Kartal were more unusual than dragons themselves, and even he was raising one from infancy. That¡¯s why they picked a young soul. Since mages left no soul after death, it was a human one, and, since humans didn¡¯t enter the Mergifari, it probably didn¡¯t come in willingly. It was simply the end result of a failed mage¡¯s experiment. She had seen Dianthus trying to get the mage¡¯s identity through the ghost, and, by his expression after, he had obtained it. He also had made sure that Velvet explicitly promised to not harm the mermaid, or the new soul. ¡­ Really, why would she bother to make the mermaid conscious just to kill her again? But she agreed, at least to reassure him. Once she finished doing the check up on the mermaid, she got up, dusting off her clothes. ¡°Well, with this, we¡¯re even.¡± She then said, sending him off with a wave from her hand. Since a while ago, Velvet had been sensing Frenese getting closer, probably hunting down Dianthus. She had not done anything about it, since, in the end, she did very much want Dianthus to leave the pocket dimension. So, in a way, the Devil¡¯s appetite was helping her in nudging the Chosen One towards leaving. But, when she didn¡¯t get any response, or heard the steps of Dianthus leaving, she turned around, meeting him eye to eye, as he looked back at her with a hand resting on his chin, raising her suspicions. Not missing how he didn¡¯t look at her at first. ¡°I¡¯ve been thinking, and¡­ you don¡¯t really have that much experience in mage combats, don¡¯t you?¡± ¡°That¡¯s not completely true.¡± Velvet squinted at him, pondering how many explosions were needed to force Dianthus out. One too many. ¡°Plus, I¡¯m a support mage, no amount of weight lifting is gonna give me a combat mage¡¯s strength.¡± ¡°All your losses were saved because your opponent wanted something from you.¡± Dianthus continued, confirming to Velvet that the Corruption of Fate had just finished telling him something. ¡°And I happen to know a lot about exercises for support mages to get combat experience, with Creftalia¡¯s Seal of Approval.¡± ¡°No, get out!¡± Chapter 173. Scorched ¡°Well, with this, we¡¯re even.¡± Velvet said, waving him off. Oh well, it wasn¡¯t like he opposed loitering for a while longer, but if both Velvet and Frenese were so adamant about kicking him out, he wasn¡¯t going to make a fuss. Velvet wanted some calm and freedom, and, with every Arhontissian mage on the Mergifari searching for him, and, as long as he remained there, that soon would end . Whatever spell Cardomos had used to hide the pocket dimension, it no longer could be modified without him, and so, its effects were stagnating. An unmoving, unchanging spell, no longer misleading the tracking ones with different tricks would eventually get countered, and, with enough people searching, they were bound to eventually find the needle in the haystack. So it was fine for him, really. Plus, he¡¯d been long enough without bothering Igern, Creftalia and company. Surely they missed him. ¡°Don¡¯t leave.¡± The voice in his head, now back from Velvet, spoke before he acted on his decision, making him fall silent. ¡°He is coming.¡± It continued, its words rushed. ¡°I¡¯ll go into hiding until that mutt settles on the unfortunate vessel. Recharge the pocket dimension¡¯s seal, and make Velvet modify it. Her third, seventh and twenty fourth suggestions for the new seal would suffice. Ignore the others, that head will figure them out.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t get out until I¡¯m back.¡± ¡°Which one was mutt again?¡± The only time his companion had retreated was when Lothrigern got inside his mind, and no other time. Not even in the goddess Arhontissa¡¯s presence. But Lothigern was grasshopper, not mutt. It did not answer, certifying the fact that he had left Dianthus to deal with the rest on his own¡­ and with Velvet, who was looking at him without blinking. It is what it is. He thought, meeting Velvet¡¯s gaze. ¡°I¡¯ve been thinking, and¡­ you don¡¯t really have that much experience in mage combats, don¡¯t you?¡± ¡­ Back on the Mergifari, inside a dinner hall that one could call classic but simple, with a combination of marble pillars with decorations used on modern manors, yet lacking any indicator that mages lived there, three people were having a feast in silence. A silence broken by the scraping noise of the rolling wheels of a serving trolley, pushed from behind by a servant. A servant, humanoid at first glance, dressed in maid clothes, with a body following the average human proportions down to the last detail. Not a single hair was out of place, nor was any finger longer, shorter, thinner or thicker than it should be. And yet¡­ The maid¡¯s skin, clothes, eyes, hair¡­ everything down to her last fingernail was completely white. Paper white. Folded paper white. An origami maid. She pushed the trolley towards the opposite end of the rectangular wooden table, the only empty side, opposite of the one presiding over it. On top of it, a silver tray, wide enough to contain the full roasted pig inside it, revealed once the maid lifted the heavy cloche effortlessly. Then she prepared two plates, setting them aside before taking the whole tray, lifting it, and putting it in front of one of the mages seated at the table. Not the one at the end of it, but of the one at the side. Right on top of several, similar, empty trays. Not even the paper maid risked removing them from Cheron, who started digging in while the maid was setting the food down, crunching and munching at the meat, spilling juices. And yet, none of those drops reached the ground, nor the table. Once Cheron was busy with her food, the maid served the remaining plates, first the mage in front of Cheron, an old man with a long, white beard. Hasdrubal the All-Knowing. She put the plate between the instruments and utensils he had arranged around his zone of the table. Metronomes, orbs of different materials, sizes and colors, a scrying hand mirror, the previous plate full with barely eaten, cold food¡­ The maid had no other choice than to nudge some of the things away, making way for the new, steaming plate. She did not take the other, as if sending a message. And then, she finally served the one at the end of the table, at the position usually reserved for the one presiding over it. Even though the one sitting there felt more like shackled to the seat. Because he wasn¡¯t there for being the most important mage in the room, no. The reason he was there was because it had the shortest side. Charon had her side filled with trays, and¡­ really, the furthest she was away from him, the better. And Hasdrubal had his side filled with trinkets. Of the three, only he didn¡¯t have anything extra on the table. So, when the maid served his plate, it did so easily, removing the empty one.Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. And Agorn Krischa had no other choice than to look at the plate with a hardly hidden dread. As someone used to snack on little bits of food throughout the day, having his meals switched to the three per day format was already bad. Now, adding his companions to that¡­ every single bite was like swallowing a bag of dry flour. But leaving that aside for now, there should be a reason why a novice mage like him, previously an ally of the Idirian mages, was currently in Mergifari company. And it was quite a simple one, in fact. After the absolute fiasco that was the Opening, with tens of novice mages dying because a Devil got loose, the Tarius were held responsible. He didn¡¯t know all the details, since it was mostly a private deal between them and the Mergifari, but one of the things they had to give away were all their novice mages¡­ of which he was the only option, since the others had died after summoning the Devil Frenese. The only reason he didn¡¯t end up as another number more in the dead list, was because, after following the Tarius instructions to take down the knowledge mage Irsen Kartal had hired, the novice Velvet Consestella Dobastro, she found him and hospitalized him. Violently. So, he had missed all of it by being bedridden. His position might have ended up being the last in the list because of that, but he was alive. The only one of his group¡­ ex-group that could say so. Agorn wouldn¡¯t say they were friends, since he barely knew them, but he didn¡¯t dislike them. And, looking down at the roasted pig meat¡­ ¡°If you don¡¯t want it, push it here.¡± A high pitched voice said. Cheron¡¯s. ¡°Do they taste the same?¡± He blurted without thinking. ¡°Human and pig?¡± Agorn realized a bit too late what he had just said, flinching to meet Cheron¡¯s creeping grin, her silver and golden teeth glistening. ¡°Don¡¯t be silly! I don¡¯t cook or season human meat!¡± She raised her hands¡­ well, the long sleeves covering those, not a single thread of cloth dirtied by food, despite not using any sort of utensils. ¡°Now, push it over. Now, now.¡± Agorn did as told, not hungry in the least and more so of meat, using the fork to slide the dish closer to Cheron, to the disappointment of the maid. For a being made of folded paper, she¡¯s too expressive¡­ He didn¡¯t have time to do anything about that, since suddenly, the whole room went dark. Not even a few hours had passed since the whole space almost crumbled down, only stopping because the Director stepped up, that another different thing was starting. Agorn turned his face towards Hasdrubal, gauging his reaction. He was the most knowable mage in the room, after all! Hasdrubal had lifted his head, eyes fixated on the window, as his pupil contracted, expanded and multiplied, thin vertical lines crossing the whole of his eye, an imitation of the flipping of pages of a book, fast, and then faster and fast- ¡°If you keep looking, your brain juices are gonna spill doooown your ears,¡± Cheron said, not having stopped eating from a moment. ¡°And I¡¯ll lick them aaaall way up.¡± Something cracked inside her mouth, as she slurped at something. The pig¡¯s brains or marrow? He didn¡¯t look, switching his gaze to also look at the window. Outside, the moon had come out, blocking the sun. An eclipse? There wasn¡¯t any coming, plenty of mages kept track of that. And yet, there it was, up in the sky. A ring of light, uncalled for. Agorn hadn¡¯t seen many eclipses during his life, not really caring for them, but this one, appearing right after the collapse¡­ Despite his lack of knowledge, he didn¡¯t trust it to be a normal eclipse. His suspicions soon got answered, as one of Hasdrubal¡¯s orbs shattered, and then another, and another, sacrificed as an outlet to pay the price of observing that which shouldn¡¯t be seen. Something Agorn knew from being born in a mage family. Since he didn¡¯t try to analyze beyond the eclipse, it didn¡¯t affect him. But, not watching below the superficial didn¡¯t exempt him from seeing what went on the surface, as the ring of light coming from the sun wrapped around the moon, starting to ignite it. The fire tendrils embraced the moon like snakes, spiraling around the circle, slowly erasing everything in their path. Something like that shouldn¡¯t be possible, since the distance between them was over a hundred million kilometers. If the sun approached that much, forget the moon, all of the world would be set ablaze! ¡­ That would be a way to fix the Permafrost problem, now that he thought about it. One that would kill all of them in the process. And yet, that was what was happening. Like an ember dropped on top of a stack of papers, a black, burnt hole progressively grew where the moon hung. And, unlike the collapse of space, nothing could be done this time, not even by the Director. They just watched as the moon was consumed, leaving a pitch black, hollow hole up in the sky. Even when nothing else was left to burn from the moon, the light of the day didn¡¯t come. The only noises inside the hall were now the crunches of Cheron eating the glass that had fallen on top of the pig¡¯s meat, followed by the paper maid walking back with a broom. ¡­ It was coming. The moon was gone, and the unending night had come. He had forgotten that he could cry. Red, sticky tears fell from his eyes nonstop, the curtain trembling under the grasp of his white, pale, dead hand. It was coming. The moon was gone, and the unending night had come. For eight hundred forty six years he¡¯d been waiting. Eight hundred forty six years since he had been aware of what he was, and of who was the original responsible of it. The only one with the power to change it. Hunt me. The hollow moon said as he looked at it. Vanquish me. Only then will I recognize you. It finished, while his own crimson eyes never left the one in the artificial night. ¡°O Lord,¡± He whispered against the window. No reflection came from it, nor did his words leave any fog in the glass. ¡°There¡¯s nothing else I can feel aside from gratitude for giving me this opportunity.¡± Despite not having any need for air, he sighed, tuning around to meet another one of them. Pale skin, white hair, red eyes. Like him, those were filled with bloody tears, her too sharing the joy of existing long enough to participate in the Night Hunt. ¡°Warn everyon- No, everyone is aware now. Contact Scheille, we need to see if the Mergifari has clues about where the Hallowed will awake.¡± Chapter 174. Honest Red Reflection Velvet looked around, at the tropical trees, the sound of waves crashing against the shore formed by the old corpse of the colossal, mythical turtle. She was back at the wandering island where Lothigern had dropped her days ago, the place where she took and passed the trial of the Goddess of Darkness. In fact, she had finished setting up the altar, the candles already lit and burning, the hue of the flames beginning to switch. Something that shouldn¡¯t be possible, since that had already happened. And there was never a need or intention to repeat the trial. Next to the fact that she currently was inside Cardomos¡¯ pocket dimension. Or she had been a minute ago. A dream? I don¡¯t remember falling asleep, and Dianthus didn¡¯t attack me or anything. Velvet looked up at the moon, different from the one back then. When she had done the ritual, it was almost full, yet not completely, before the Goddess of Darkness took over, making it red. It didn¡¯t go red this time. No. With a snap, a hole appeared in the middle, hollowing the moon. A pressing sensation grew on her chest, taking her breath away as she instinctively used a Wake Up charm. It did not work. As the moon continued being devoured by the void, Velvet kept on feeling that tug on her chest, pulling her towards the thing behind the moon. It¡¯s using my connection with the Goddess of Darkness to track me. A hijacking? Mages could take ownership of other¡¯s spells if the Paradigm wasn¡¯t the one the caster belonged to, so it wasn¡¯t unheard of. But, to hijack a ritual belonging to a god? For something like that to work, the thief should be above a deity. That soon? The Corruption of Fate spoke about Andras sending another Deriliam to hunt the ones aware of the Chained Man¡¯s true name down, but she expected it to take a few days at most! Not even a single one had passed! But why? I didn¡¯t manage to learn his name, so why is it coming for me? Something was lacking, a piece of information about why the Deriliam was here, with her. Should she try to kill herself to end the dream? Unlike other times, she didn¡¯t know how she fell asleep, which made her reluctant to try the extreme approach. The knife she used back then was still in her hand, sharp as a devil. A single stab and¡­ Something fell from the hollowed moon, making no noise as it landed behind the trees. Velvet squinted at the thing¡¯s direction, raising the knife and pressing it against her throat, hard enough to draw some blood. It didn¡¯t hurt, but it wasn¡¯t enough to wake her up. The foliage moved in an unnatural way, not following the wind''s direction, spreading in her direction. So she increased the pressure in her neck, the blade digging into her skin- And yet, before she managed to cut deep enough, a strange sensation enveloped her hand, grabbing the knife between her flesh and the weapon, taking it away from her. It enterwinned between her fingers, keeping her arm extended, pulling the hand gripping the knife away from her, turning her hand around until the knife¡¯s edge faced up, the blade and her fingers glistening red. The Deriliam faced her, a shapeless shadow around her size, with no distinguishable features aside from one, the reason why the Corruption of Fate called him one-eyed. It wasn¡¯t because he had a single eye like a cyclops, no. It had two, just that the left one was a gaping hole, a fresh wound on his face with a substance similar to blood falling from it. A blood tainted with purple, resembling poison. Poison, or a curse. And the right eye, the healthy one, was a pale silver, just like the moon he took away. Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! The Deriliam brought Velvet¡¯s hand towards his face, before licking a stripe across the knife¡¯s blade, tasting the blood. She flinched, the tongue temperature absurdly cold, not having any sort of texture. Plus it was weird. A bloodsucking shadow was Creftalias¡¯ territory, not hers. She was more than satisfied with Lothrigern¡¯s pointy ears. ¡°An immature witch.¡± The shadow said, not a second later, removing his tongue from Velvet¡¯s fingers, yet not releasing her hand. ¡°A mage.¡± Velvet corrected. ¡°Just like a caterpillar is an immature moth.¡± ¡°Or a butterfly.¡± The shadow tilted his head, making Velvet notice that maybe bickering with a Deriliam wasn¡¯t the best idea, especially the one who fathered curses, and yet¡­ He was the one initiating the conversation! It wasn¡¯t Velvet¡¯s fault that she liked to shittalk back! Luckily for her, the Deriliam didn¡¯t seem to take it personally. Now, back again, the Corruption had mentioned how both him and Lothrigern used special means to cross space without breaking down everything. So there was a chance of him being unable to do anything directly to her. The shadowy fingers pressed on her hand, on her Esca. ¡°Haashi Morgania and Andras Apolyon¡¯s smells are usual on witches, but¡­¡± ¡°Lothrigern, Baetylus and Nadnaheille¡¯s are not. At least not together.¡± So that¡¯s the name of the one with the thousand hands. And the reason behind why and how he had tracked her down. She simply had collected too many Deriliam¡¯s influences, which called his attention. But that means he isn¡¯t hunting me down under Andras¡¯ orders, and it¡¯s just curious. Velvet relaxed slightly. For now, at least. ¡°I guess I was¡­ greedy?¡± She said, not exactly lying. Well, not lying at all. ¡°A bit?¡± That one was definitely a lie. ¡°A bit.¡± He repeated, before sniffing around the air, reminding Velvet of a hunting dog. ¡°Is that why you¡¯re hiding your location?¡± That proved that she was still in Cardomos¡¯ pocket dimension. Her body, at least. Lothrigern had been the only one able to find it, and He was temporarily in cahoots with the Corruption. In some strange, warped way where both were waiting for the other¡¯s eventual betrayal. Well, waiting to be the one to first betray the other. ¡°Mayhaps. One of the reasons on a long list of reasons.¡± Velvet¡¯s eyes met his, watching it twinkle like a replacement for the moon. ¡°Hmm.¡± The Deriliam hummed, finally releasing her hand. ¡°There¡¯s another one¡¯s traces, deeper.¡± In a blink, the shadow moved forward, leaning closer to her, breath colliding against her neck, shadow fingers probing at the bleeding wound there. Velvet grimaced, jumping away. ¡°Deriliam or not, you¡¯re not supposed to sniff and poke at a lady! Were you not taught any manners?!¡± The Deriliam didn¡¯t answer anything at all, falling silent. And yet, to her surprise, took a step back and composed himself, looking at her with his healthy eye. Almost mischievously, like a cat watching a mouse, dragging his tongue across his teeth, where two sharp, long fangs peeked, getting tainted red with her blood. Wait, he didn¡¯t have teeth a second ago. Nor anything aside from the hollow eye and the moon eye (and the tongue), but, progressively, the shadow had started to become less and less undefined, something more akin to a human. ¡°Very well, we can do it as equals. Since this world lacks contenders I won¡¯t refuse anyone.¡± Do what as equals now¡­ She should''ve asked the Corruption more about the Deriliam, but, since he said contenders, the possibilities were pretty limited. ¡°What if I¡¯d rather not?¡± ¡°Then I will have to sniff and poke at the lady¡¯s secret here and now, since I am chasing something.¡± Right. That lady¡¯s secret he sensed was probably the Chained Man, so Velvet had no intention of just handing it to him¡­ Also, this Deriliam was way too used to speaking with humans; after talking with and seeing the others, it was mostly jarring. ¡°Don¡¯t worry too much. Unlike the others, I always give contenders a fair chance, and death is never the price of losing.¡± Way too used to dealing with humans. ¡°Is the price of losing a curse?¡± She asked, even when sure of the answer. ¡°Indeed.¡± He said. How long could she stay in Cardomos¡¯ pocket dimension? ¡­ She could wring Dianthus dry of magic to power it, since the guy had insisted on remaining there. And shake the Corruption of Fate until it spilled everything about the one-eyed curse. But then, the Deriliam made a clicking noise, calling for her attention. ¡°Knowledge witches have this¡­ perk. Whether it¡¯s their memories or dreams, they don¡¯t lie. They recreate everything down to perfection, down to the last detail. From the smell of the earth to the number of leaves in every single tree.¡± ¡°Their memories are so honest that they make note of reflecting all of themselves, down to the undertones of the flavor and texture of their own blood.¡± Velvet flinched, taking another step back, biting her tongue so as to not curse the Father of Curses. Dammit, he was right. Unused to deal with enemies in her dreams, she had ignored the weakness of Knowledge mages. The fact that enemies could use her own memories against her. ¡°So don¡¯t bother running or hiding away. The Night Hunt is long, and there¡¯s always time for catching runaway prey.¡± Chapter 175. Sea stars Sticky. And cold. And wet. Those were the first sensations she felt once regaining consciousness. A pretty gross sensation, since she felt them against her face. And arm. And leg. She got up, pushing herself away from the ground, damp with the water from the flesh pool where the mermaid was. The same one who apparently had tried to wake Velvet up by splashing some of it over her; an action born from good intentions, but, since that red liquid was mixed with some fluids and a metallic smell, made the result pretty disgusting. She shouldn¡¯t have bothered. Really. But Dianthus could have bothered, since the guy was definitely a land creature, and was being annoying right before she fell unconscious. Which¡­ probably meant that something had also happened to him. Again. He¡¯s like a cosmic trouble magnet. No wonder he gets constantly monitored. Velvet thought, stepping closer to the flesh pool to pat the mermaid¡¯s head, since it kept extending her arms forward trying to grab her dress. With her claws. ¡°Do you have object permanence?¡± The mermaid didn¡¯t answer, sinking until the water reached her eyes, both of them fixated on Velvet, dark in color with black, U-shaped pupils, the irises surrounded by a blue pale ring. Like those of whales. Velvet had only seen dead whales, since they were hunted all around Charlampia for the oil inside their blubber, to the point where their appearances had become more and more rare with the years. But it was told that they remembered faces, even though Velvet half-expected their vision outside water to be blurry. Speaking of water and whales, mermaids were also from the sea, and yet, this one didn¡¯t show any issue with being inside fresh water, which meant that the organs littering the ground, pumping and squirming were modifying it in some way. It tasted downright atrocious, in Velvet¡¯s honest and true opinion, but, as long as it did the job, it worked. Now, Hyde was gone too, which upped the number of beings that could¡¯ve pulled Velvet away from the puddle she was sleeping in and did not to two. Massaging her temple with the hand that wasn¡¯t busy patting the mermaid, she looked around, trying to find the demon spider or, as second choice, the bigger Dianthus. Something difficult to see since the lights had been turned off, the candles burnt away with the passage of time, covering the room in a veil of darkness. Maybe one of those squirming, human-sized organs was Dianthus taking a nap on the ground. She doubted that, remembering each and every organ in the room before fainting. There wasn¡¯t a single one more, not even superimposed. The blessing from the Goddess of Darkness gave her a slightly better vision at night, but she was still human, and missed the light, more so after a dream like that. So she summoned one of her paper figurines, holding it in her hand before lighting it up, its small, round head setting on fire. She lifted it up, illuminating the room. ¡°They aren¡¯t here.¡± She muttered, taking a step back from the pool, stopping when the mermaid grabbed her hand, keeping it on top of her head. ¡°Don¡¯t be clingy, I have things to do.¡± Nudging her head a little, she released her hand. The mermaid blew some bubbles, dejected, floating back like a forgotten, rotten log on a lake. Splash! And then, whacking her tail against the surface, she shoved a lot of water on top of Velvet, drenching her more than she was before. Red droplets fell from her dress and hair, a crumpled, wet, no longer burning piece of paper in her hand. Wiping her face with the sleeve that was more dry of the two, she clicked her tongue. ¡°I was going to get some trouts later for you, but since you wanna be a misbehaving fishie so bad, you¡¯re getting the worms.¡± Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. Clearly the mermaid didn¡¯t understand the meaning of her words yet, squinting at her from under the water, but once she started feeling hungry, she certainly would. Leaving the pouty fish behind, she reached into her Demon¡¯s Deal, trying to contact Hyde. He was alive, she was sure of that, but his location was currently a mystery. A not so far away mystery. He was deeper in the room, behind the remains of what was left of the chained man¡¯s statue after the Goddess of Death broke it. ¡°Hyde? Why are you hiding?¡± She said, cautiously walking towards the pile of debris, making a circle instead of a straight line. Not as big of a circle as she would¡¯ve wanted, since the room was small. ¡°I¡¯m not.¡± The spider answered. ¡°I¡¯m simply observing and taking note of how cross-espatial possession evolves.¡± ¡°Well, you won¡¯t be seeing anything but the start.¡± Another voice joined, this one belonging to Dianthus. Well, at least she didn¡¯t have to search for them separately. ¡°Busy becoming friends while I slept in a puddle?¡± ¡°Making physical contact with someone under the influence of a Deriliam is unwise, as you can see with our friend here.¡± Hyde said, with the tone he used for Velvet when she fucked up something after he told her it wouldn¡¯t work. So her curiosity got the better of her, as she rushed her pace to finish the circle, coming face to face with Dianthus sitting on the ground. He raised his head to look up at her, a gaping hole where his left eye was supposed to be. Just like the hollow moon. ¡°Looks worse than it feels.¡± He said, the lack of an eye not managing to erase his condescending expression. ¡°I hope so, because it looks atrocious.¡± ¡°I told him to wait before grabbing you.¡± Hyde said, starting to climb her dress, avoiding the wet patches. ¡°And he didn¡¯t, because, and I quote-¡± ¡°What¡¯s the worst that can happen to me, the amazing Chosen One?¡± She finished in the demon¡¯s place. ¡°I didn¡¯t say the last four words, but I appreciate you calling me amazing.¡± Dianthus grabbed some of the debris behind him, trying to push himself up, but, due to lacking half of his vision, one of the stones he touched gave up, and he sat down again. Moving to the side he could see, she offered him a hand. ¡°Those four were part of your inner monologue.¡± He dusted off his hands first, with magic, if Velvet might add, the dust sliding down his gloves like water down a duck, or, to be more elegant, a swan. Then, he extended a hand, touching her wrist before flinching back, frowning. Can the Deriliam¡¯s influence affect him further? So much for being so strong and unbeatable and- ¡°Why are you wet?!¡± And a damned clean freak. ¡°And why are you hiding here? Did getting cursed make you go mope on the corner?¡± ¡°Because the mermaid kept on splashing that gross water at me.¡± Despite lacking an eye, he managed to side eye Velvet from head to the puddle forming around her feet. So that¡¯s why the floor was so wet. It all was Dianthus'' fault! ¡°Nevermind then. You¡¯re an independent, strong Chosen One that needs no knowledge mage¡¯s help.¡± She pulled back her hand, but not before Dianthus gave up and grabbed her hand, getting up. Just to instantly use a cleaning spell over his gloves, removing the red, watery stains. And then, before Velvet was about to whip her wet hair at him, he used the same spell over her, removing all the dirt and water, drying her clothes, skin and hair. ¡°So you can show some gratitude.¡± She said, looking at the hole in his face. ¡°But, shouldn¡¯t you be focused on not getting possessed?¡± ¡°I am inmune.The Deriliam isn¡¯t trying to take over my body, it¡¯s¡­¡± Removing one of his white gloves, the material too delicate and expensive-looking to be leather, he revealed the skin within. Red, serpentine lines crossed his hand, parting the skin and blooming into small, bloody flowers. With a flash, Dianthus erased them, burning his hand to ashes, before it regenerated. Then, the lines appeared again, blooming into flowers as they did. A single drop of blood fell down before Dianthus burned it, and he clicked his tongue. ¡°It¡¯s more like drinking. Some of my flesh is disappearing. Not faster than I can regenerate, though, but I don¡¯t know where it¡¯s going.¡± ¡°I can only assume that the Deriliam is creating itself a body from your own.¡± Hyde said. ¡°Like a starfish? Snap one Dianthus in half, get two?¡± She eyed him up and down, just like he¡¯d done to her previously. ¡°Starfishes do that?¡± Dianthus squinted at her. ¡°It wouldn¡¯t be two of me, it doesn¡¯t work like that.¡± ¡°Did you try?¡± ¡°Igern gets really creative when pissed. Now, imagine if it had worked, he would have lost it.¡± Putting back his glove, he rolled his non-empty eye. ¡°More than he has.¡± Then, he looked expectantly at Velvet. ¡°To cut the Deriliam¡¯s connection we need to modify that guy¡¯s formation-¡± ¡°Cardomos. Even if you wanna be a petty loser, he was an important figure on the last Machia. Use his name.¡± Dianthus pressed his lips in a thin line, but didn¡¯t say anything else on the matter. ¡°Look, if we fail, we can make Igern meet two Dianthus.¡± Chapter 176. Uninvited, unwanted, uncalled, one-eyed. Time had passed since Cardomos¡¯ death, enough for the edges between the Death Realm, where they were now, and the Material Realm to begin growing signs of conflict. Without its Realm Ruler, the Death Realm contained inside the pocket dimension would try to merge back with the one outside, leaking through the gaps that would appear. Like black sludge, the ghosts, lost souls and other inhabitants of the realm would merge with the ground into dark puddles, before seeping away. That wasn¡¯t what was happening. No, what was happening was that, between the gaps and the sludge, a path made of internal organs; guts, stomachs and the like, ran through the conflicting edges between Realms, devouring the weak souls that couldn¡¯t escape the pull. And boy was Dianthus drilling his gaze on her back because of that. Really, it wasn¡¯t totally her fault! She didn¡¯t (exactly) control Frenese¡¯s actions. Also, the Gluttony Devil doing that did prevent a future problem, so it wasn¡¯t completely bad! Just¡­ moderately so. It wasn¡¯t as bad as the pocket dimension starting to break down with them inside, after all. Even if Dianthus did disagree. Which he did. All the way from the start. ¡°Not everyone can afford the choice to brute force every single issue that crosses their path.¡± Velvet said, jumping around the meshes of black sludge, organs and other things, followed by Dianthus. ¡°Yes, but I¡¯m here, and I can.¡± She didn¡¯t turn around to look at him, at a certain hole in his face, but clicked her tongue. ¡°Every time you try to fix something you break two more. Just ignore Frenese for a while. Focus on the issue at hand. Or at face.¡± ¡°Ha-ha.¡± Black droplets floated in the air, and she touched one, spreading it over her thumb and index, the sludge spreading across her glove like ink. The majority of the ghosts here are extremely weak, and they can¡¯t resist the pull from the Death Realm outside, nor escape Frenese¡¯s Hell. They were walking towards the center of the pocket dimension¡¯s formation, following the strings of sigils, symbols and smaller formations that had become visible when used by both Frenese and the diverging Realms, simplifying the path to follow. After a while of silence, Dianthus spoke again. ¡°There¡¯s no way this ends well for anyone, including you. Even Igern keeps his shenanigans behind locked doors. What if the other side of the pocket dimension had been inhabited by humans?¡± ¡°That would¡¯ve been difficult, since someone broke it down to ashes and dust.¡± ¡°After checking that no one else was there. Can that Devil, who already did eat a pocket dimension full of mages, mind you, do the same?¡± Ahh¡­ She sighed internally. Dianthus didn¡¯t want to let the issue go, didn¡¯t he? At least now, with Frenese on the loose and his Hell all over the place, she had a way to push back against his whims, and neutralize him if Dianthus got too annoying. After all, she wasn¡¯t able to defeat him in combat, but the Gluttony Devil, on the other hand¡­ A Gluttony Devil who was no longer starved for hundreds of years. ¡°Knowledge mages die alone for this same reason. Usually from a stab in the back.¡± Why did he use such a weird voice? ¡°Are you picking up ventriloquism behind me?¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t the one talking.¡± She heard Dianthus say, now with his normal voice, which made her stop and turn around. From the side of the face with the gaping hole, two rows of white, clean, sharp teeth had grown, forming a mouth. ¡°Oh, interesting¡­¡± Hyde said, crawling onto her shoulder. ¡°Didn''t you just say that it wouldn¡¯t go further? ¡­ Do you think it has a throat?¡± She pulled out a small, metallic rod, intending to poke Dianthus¡¯ face with it, but he slapped it away, squinting at her. ¡°It hasn¡¯t. I don¡¯t feel any difference from before.¡± As to prove a point, he reached at his face, fingers clawing at the teeth, digging into his flesh, burning them away with light magic. So it¡¯s something it could¡¯ve done from the start, but waited to do so. The teeth had been the same as the ones in her dream, so, if there was any doubt about the perpetrator previously, now it was gone. Dianthus finished removing the mouth from his face, pulling away his blood soaked fingers and staring at them, the bright red clashing against the pure white. Then he flicked some of that blood at Velvet¡¯s face. Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. Boom! A paper figurine exploded behind his neck, the impact controlled, yet focused on breaking his cervical spine. Dianthus fell down on his knees, remaining still for several seconds before rubbing his neck, the broken bones quickly rearranging themselves. ¡°Oh.¡± Velvet said, without a hint of apology in her voice, cleaning the blood droplets on her face with her sleeve. ¡°Thought you were attacking me.¡± Too bad I wasted that one. Until she got cleaned from the accumulated Miasma, she didn¡¯t possess that much spare magic to create more paper figurines, and even less to teleport and explode them. And she wanted to save what little she had in case Dianthus or the Deriliam tried something other than pranks. Speaking of the prankster, he recovered insanely fast, getting up in less than ten seconds, wasting two of those to clean and fix his clothes. In the end, it really is more resourceful to throw ink at his clothes if I want to stall him. Pressing her lips in a thin line, Velvet turned around and continued walking. ¡°Don¡¯t get mad¡­ I thought you would summon Frenese.¡± ¡­ Dianthus looked at Velvet¡¯s back, holding back a sigh. He had lost the Devil¡¯s signal a while ago, before the Deriliam appeared, not finding him anywhere. And, since his way to detect him was by reading the Devil¡¯s mind, he couldn¡¯t exactly tell Velvet that he wanted to find her dog. Since he wanted to find it to have a nice, polite conversation. ¡°It¡¯s truly laughable.¡± A not new, but neither known or wanted voice said in his mind. ¡°You expect your words to make her do your bidding, but she¡¯s just thinking about how to get rid of you if you act out of line with the least amount of resources.¡± ¡°I know that, shut up. I¡¯m simply used to Igern blowing up with the bare minimum effort. Not my fault she¡¯s stingy.¡± ¡°Right, you do, don¡¯t you? Since you¡¯re a mind reader. Something unusual for your kind.¡± Raising his hand again, Dianthus planned on simply tearing half his head off, not stopping until the Deriliam got the memo to leave. His mind reading¡¯s abilities were his most deeply hidden secret, the kind that could ruin his whole life and relationships if it were to get out. That¡¯s where he drew the line. If he had to rip half his face off over and over and over, until they reached the pocket dimension¡¯s formation, he would do so. ¡°Calm down, it was merely an observation. I have no interest in inviting an undying to the Hunt.¡± ¡°You know, at least Lothrigern didn¡¯t bother talking with me when messing with my brain. You things are insufferable, and I¡¯m the one saying that.¡± ¡°I¡¯m simply commenting on how curious your behavior is, as the closest being to an undying there is.¡± Did the Deriliam compare them? It wasn¡¯t that strange, since his companion, the Corruption of Fate, as Velvet now referred to it, had mentioned that Chosen One¡¯s skills were above the ones offered by gods, since gods could be killed. Verdict that had no effect on his ego. None at all. Since he didn¡¯t answer, the Deriliam kept on talking. ¡°Did you choose to follow the saying of keeping friends close, and enemies closer?¡± He was almost understanding Igern right now. ¡°Or is it a more noble belief? To try to fix them before it¡¯s too late?¡± Almost. ¡°Well, what if I told you I¡¯m into that? What then?¡± ¡°...¡± Oh, so that did shut up the Deriliam. ¡°If I wanted to chase down the idiots who mellow down once you slap them once, I would do that. But I don¡¯t want those, they are boring and the moment you take your eyes off them, they just fucking die. I want the ones that can claw, burn and break down anything they need to reach something they want. I want them to fight and kill me as many times as it takes and get away with it.¡± ¡°Now, I won¡¯t let them kill innocents, don¡¯t misunderstand me. The one I¡¯m letting them play with is my life.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what your whole deal is, but someone called you a dumb, one-eyed mutt, and I agree, so, like any good dog, keep hunting down rabbits, since that¡¯s all what you¡¯re good for.¡± At the next instant, the pocket dimension got covered in shadows, rumbling as if an earthquake was hitting it. Meters in front of him, Velvet wobbled slightly, before holding herself up against a tree for the seconds it lasted. No more than three before it stopped, the faint, greyish hue of the Death Realm coming back. ¡°Oh, my apologies, I got too excited at the word hunt.¡± The rows of teeth had grown instantly on Dianthus face, no longer speaking to him, but to Velvet, the tone more apologetic than the one she had used after breaking his neck not long ago, followed by a short laugh, a laugh he would call nervous, if it didn¡¯t come from a Deriliam. ¡°Yes, I want to hunt you now. Velvet, you¡¯re tired, but it¡¯s fine, I have hopes on your brain.¡± ¡°Here, I found the perfect enemy for you two.¡± Once the Deriliam finished the sentence, the mouth and hollow eye disappeared, Dianthus¡¯ face going back to normal, the sensation of having blood syphoned gone too, replaced by a really bad omen. ¡°What did you do?¡± Something caught on and shared by Velvet, who directed an accusatory glare at him. ¡°I¡­ I bragged about you and Igern to him, as my personal, potential rivals?¡± She raised an eyebrow at him, tilting her head to the side. ¡°And called him a good for nothing dog, only useful for hunting rabbits.¡± ¡°Making us the potential rabbits in the scenario.¡± Velvet rubbed her temples, raising a finger when Dianthus opened his mouth. ¡°If your next words are about how we can¡¯t lose with you here, don¡¯t.¡± ¡°But-¡± ¡°Don¡¯t.¡±